An event could be anything from a conference to a concert. Obviously, we all know which is the fun one. Concerts are one of the best ways to let loose and enjoy music live. Many artists have started touring and being booked by companies for events. Additionally, it is almost Christmas, meaning more and more businesses will organise Christmas concerts, which we desperately need.
Attending a concert can be entertaining and social- although planning an event can be stressful and full of surprises. Organising a successful concert consists of planning, booking venues, booking artists, organising equipment, sales and keeping everyone safe.
These risks are the exact reason all event organisation firms purchase event insurance. Therefore, event insurance is the perfect cover for event companies to reduce the impact of these risks.
What Is Event Insurance For Concerts?
Purchasing event insurance can help protect your business against any risks associated with organising a concert. Event insurance covers a range of risks that could affect the show or an accident that occurs during the performances.
Concerts are unpredictable, and event insurance gives the hosting business a fresh breath of air, knowing whatever goes wrong, they are protected. The insurance can avoid financial loss, reputation damage and protection against unwanted claims.
Therefore, before your business executes the concert, it is recommended to consult with a specialist insurance provider. That understands your event and can help you pick the right event insurance policy to fit the occasion.
How To Plan A Concert With The Help Of Event Insurance?
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Set Purpose And A Brief Plan For Event-Premium Calculation
One of the first steps of planning an event/concert is determining the event’s purpose and set out a brief plan. Purpose plans help the business understand who the event’s target market will be, the theme, and ideal artists. It is the most crucial stage of executing an event; it helps the company budget and promote.
Each event has a specific theme that they must follow, which determines the location, date and artists. For example, a business would not hire a metal band for a family Christmas theme event, the public would be shocked and would not meet the right target market.
A well-structured plan allows the following steps to become easier and reduce surprising incidents. One of the key ways to reduce unpredictable risks in advance is to purchase event insurance. When a business provides this plan to the insurer, it allows the insurance company to customise the best insurance policy for the event. It is the best example of “It is better to be safe than sorry“. The insurer will provide coverage for anything that could go wrong and the premium payment by the business. In addition, insurers also inform the business beforehand what incidents insurance cannot cover. Finally, consulting insurers allows the company to use the event insurance policy to plan further and change the part that event insurance may not be cover.
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Booking Artists– Cancellation
Concerts are not concerts without an excellent artist. Artists are the talent that makes the event fun and brings in the customer. An artist could include a singer, band, comedian and anyone who performs for the audience. When organising an event, it is essential to pick the right artist that fits the theme and purpose of the event. A business should always allocate a decent amount of the budget for the artist, as some artists can be costly.
Dealing with an artist is a risk that every organiser should understand. As businesses are liable for the talent and also liable if an artist cancels. When an artist cancels on a business, it can ruin the event. For example, Celine Dion cancelled her 2023 tour due to health issues.
Artists cancellation due to illness is a surprising risk but common. It may force the business to postpone or cancel the event, resulting in significant financial loss and reputation damage. The company will still have to pay for the venue, accommodation costs, media costs, equipment and more.
Such situations can occur at any time and with any artist. Customers will demand a refund, and venues will request their full payment. When a business has event insurance, they do not have to worry about financial loss and reputation damage in these cases. Event insurance will provide the funds to pay for most financial losses related to the cancellation. This means the business can focus on the next event or move the event later in time.
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Booking Venue and Time
As important as the artists are, the venue and time make the event rememberable. Venue decisions will likely take up the largest portion of your budget and will be the best way to deliver exciting and quality performances to the attendees. The venue location, facilities, date(time) and atmosphere are critical to ensuring the event’s success. An event business needs to keep the time and date in mind, as it should be a period more customers can attend. It is important to note, if the event is closer to the holidays, the location will be more expensive.
Every location comes with some risks of its own. For example, an outdoor event is fun when the weather is excellent, but the weather can be unpredictable in a city like Hong Kong. Red Rain or typhoons during a concert can be disastrous and result in events being postponed and cancelled. Once again, this would cause a business to suffer a sizeable financial loss that may be hard to recover. The company may not be able to redo the event for a future date due to the financial loss.
Event Insurance policy can provide coverage for inclement weather that causes the cancellation or delayed concert. The insurance will cover non-refundable expenses to help with financial loss. In addition, the insurance will support the host if such unwanted situations occur during or before the event.
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Ticket Sales– Cancellation
Let’s be honest; the main reason businesses organise events is to make money. The main way businesses make money through events is- by selling tickets. So selling out an event is the ideal objective of an event company. The main method of selling tickets is by providing the best entertainment in the best location and advertising to the target market. Therefore if the business has a famous artist and a comfortable location: they are on the way to success.
Although as soon as a business sells a ticket, they are responsible for providing the service they have promised the customer. As mentioned in the above examples, things don’t go as planned. Therefore the hosting businesses must refund all ticket costs if the event is cancelled. For example, Ticketmaster, a well-known ticket vendor is now refunding tickets for concerts cancelled in 2020 and 2021.
Event insurance allows the business to sell tickets with no worries. Event insurance supports your event when things go wrong. It will help cover the cost of refunding the tickets and may also cover compensation costs. Additionally, event insurance will assist with rescheduling the event.
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Equipment- Property Damage
Imagine your favourite singer performing, but now imagine it without any sound or light equipment, and you are 30 meters away. That doesn’t sound great, does it?
High-quality equipment is crucial to provide the audience with the best experience. Equipment can either be rented or owned by the hosting company. The more equipment involved in an event, the higher the risk of property damage. Equipment can be damaged in many ways, such as dropped lights, spilt drinks on the circuit board, and the list goes on. Repairing and replacing equipment is costly and can also affect the audience experience.
Event insurance is the greatest support in these unfortunate situations. The insurance will provide the cost of repair or replacement. Although, an insurance company will not cover equipment that has been damaged by rain in an outdoor event. As the host must protect their equipment in case of rain that they can’t avoid. For this reason, the host should have covered all equipment in case of the worst. However, after the investigation, the outcome shows the damage could not have been avoided pre-event: the insurance will provide the cover.
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Executing the Event -Public Liability
Finally, it’s time to let the event flow and hope for the best. When the event starts, the audience fills the location, artists start performing, and the fun begins. At this point, as the event organiser, you cannot do any more to avoid risks. Unfortunately, this is when the risks are at a peak, things may break, and the audience could get injured. The hosting business will be liable for anything that happens at the event, from injuries to property damage.
For example, many were injured during a Travis Scott performance at Astroworld Festival 2021, and ten died. The accidents were due to being crushed in the overcrowded event. The organising business will be liable for such incidents and provide compensation, medical payments and possible lawsuit costs.
Thankfully, event insurance includes public liability, which can be the saviour to the hosting company. Public liability cover is essential and will pay if your event is found liable for bodily injury or property damage. It is very rare for things to go perfectly, especially in a concert. Public liability will help with any accidents during the event and allow the host to provide the best event with less stress.
When Is The Best Time To Purchase Event Insurance?
Event insurance is an essential factor to a business organising a concert or any event. The insurance provides a range of benefits to the company and supports the event when things go wrong. However, it is vital to understand event insurance will not cover pandemic-related cancellations.
It is crucial to purchase the insurance early and at least two weeks before the event. When a business purchases event insurance early, the better coverage they will receive. Every event has its own risk, and insurance can help you deal with them.
To learn more about Event Insurance and protect your business and everyone involved during events, contact Red Asia Insurance.
