Event insurance and parties

June 12, 2023

Whenever summertime comes around, everyone appreciates the chance to stretch their arms, legs, and sheer love of life by spending more hours outdoors. When the weather turns mild, there is probably no better place to be than out in the open air of a glorious English summer’s day.

Wherever in the country you are, you’re likely to be spoilt for choice. Decisions will need to be made whether to attend the local summer fete, carnival, or village jamboree, stroll the lawns at a family member’s wedding party, or instead organise your own private BBQ or campfire gathering.

While the possibilities are enticingly endless, if you are the organiser – planning and managing events as part of your business or setting up the occasion privately just for family and friends – you also need to be aware of some of the risks.

The risks you run

You might not have considered the various risks you run as the organiser of any event or party – but they are no less real for all that. If you have been responsible for organising the event, the following are risks that might threaten to spoil everyone’s enjoyment of the occasion:

Public liability

• when you organise an event, you assume a duty of care to a potentially wide circle of individuals – visitors to and participants in whatever you have organised, the suppliers delivering items to wherever it’s held, neighbours, and members of the public;

• any of these individuals who suffer an injury or have their property damaged through some involvement with the event may hold you liable – and claim potentially substantial damages as a result;

• this public liability exists even if you have arranged a private party just for friends and relatives – if you have organised the event on a commercial basis, your public liabilities are likely to be even greater;

• while the event organiser shoulders the lion’s share of any public liability, you can still be held liable for acts of negligence if it results in someone’s physical injury or property damage even if your role is as minor as manning at a stall at a summer fete, for example;

Employers’ liability

• if it is a commercial undertaking and your business involves running, staging, or managing an event or party, you are more than likely to have employed others to help you do so;

• as an employer- and subject to very few exceptions – the law requires that you arrange suitable employers’ liability insurance;

• that is to make sure that you are adequately covered to meet the costs arising from an injury or longer-term medical ailment sustained by one of your employees – and, currently, a minimum of £5 million of indemnity is required for that purpose;

Equipment cover

• whether it is a party or celebration organised in your own back garden or a major event staged over several acres, potentially valuable equipment might be used on the day;

• it might be a fancy array of lights, for example, an all-singing and dancing sound system, or even the collection of tables and chairs you hired for an alfresco wedding reception;

Event cancellation

• we all know better than to rely on fair weather during an unpredictable British summer- if the worst comes to the worst, even the best-laid plans might need to be rained off;

• the cancellation of any event can mean a lot more than disappointed expectations and, instead, involve commercial organisers in considerable financial loss – you’ll need to refund those who have already bought tickets, suppliers will still need to be paid, and you may have the additional expense of organising an alternative event.

Event insurance

But don’t let the threat of any such risks put you off the task of arranging your next party or event – the halcyon days of summer are too fleeting to pass up any such opportunity.

Whether you plan a modest gathering of family and friends or are in the business of organising events, instead, make sure that you are appropriately protected and covered with the financial indemnity provided by event insurance. It could help to ensure that you are not left out of pocket if something goes wrong on the day.