Concerts have a way of bringing people together. Many individuals from virtually all walks of life share a love of music, and experiencing a favorite artist live can be a joyous event. A venue that features live musical acts can also establish a business model that’s very profitable for them. However, if you’re arranging for live musical acts to perform in a venue regularly, or even if you’re just doing it once, you can’t afford to neglect concert event insurance. You need indemnification just in case something goes wrong while a musical act is performing, and having the right event insurance for concerts is the responsible thing to do.
In this post, we review concert insurance, what it covers, and who needs it. By the end, all your questions about concert event insurance will be answered.
What Is Concert Event Insurance?
Concert insurance is a variety of special event insurance. As someone who has booked a musical act to perform at a venue, you will want to purchase event insurance for concerts in case any property damage occurs or any third-party personal bodily injury claims. A claim might come from either a concert-goer who gets hurt during the event or the owner of the venue if there’s unanticipated damage.
Keep in mind that the concert event insurance you get will not replace the coverage that the band performing should have. This is a separate coverage that comes into play if someone sues the band for an injury they incur that they believe the band caused. Instead, this kind of event insurance for concerts covers financial consequences. These might come from property damage or injuries to third parties that happen while the band is performing, while they’re setting up the gig, or while they’re breaking down their equipment after the show has concluded.
On the off chance that something goes wrong, the event insurance that you purchased will cover the damages on your behalf. This ensures that you will retain the profit you made from the concert. You’ll likely be dealing with concert-goers who are in a festive mood, so you will want to be sure you have enough coverage to handle the most common types of liability claims.
What Exactly Does Concert Event Insurance Cover?
Ideally, your concert will go off without a hitch, and everyone, including band members, security personnel, paying attendees, and various staff members, will get home safely. However, the event insurance for concerts that you buy is there to cover several things if there’s a mishap before, during, or after your concert.
This kind of insurance covers the following:
- Claim investigation and defense. As a concert promoter, you may occasionally be subjected to a fraudulent claim. It’s unlikely, but it can happen. If it does, concert event insurance will cover expenses associated with the claim investigation and any resulting legal defense that is required.
- Liquor liability. You need to be sure that the event insurance for concerts you purchase covers liquor liability. If someone hurts themselves at the venue where you have booked a musical act, there could be a chance that alcohol played a part in the incident. If you are selling drinks at the venue where a musical act is performed, get an insurance policy that specifically indemnifies you against alcohol-related accidents.
- Third-party property damage. Third-party property damage covers things like damage to the venue’s permanent fixtures that occur during, before, or after a concert. A stagehand in a hurry to get the band’s lighting rig set up might lose control of a heavy piece of equipment and damage the venue’s property. Your insurance policy is what makes sure you don’t have to pay for that out of pocket.
- Third-party or non-employee injuries. Let’s say a concert-goer gets too close to the stage and trips over one of the set pieces, injuring themselves. Your insurance will cover such an injury, so you don’t have to pay for it.
Who Needs Insurance for Concerts?
At this point, you’re likely wondering who exactly needs concert insurance. Are there any scenarios where you can avoid paying for it if you’re promoting a concert?
Concert organizers or promoters always need event insurance. There are different kinds you can look into, but, at a minimum, you will want general liability insurance. However, that is likely not enough to protect you if one of the incidents described in the section above takes place.
Any venue you rent out for a concert will probably require you to have a comprehensive concert insurance policy. This policy should cover the entire length of the event, from the moment the staff first starts setting up to the time the last guest has gone home, the band has departed, and all of their equipment has been packed up and removed.
What Size Policy Do You Need?
The amount of coverage you need will depend on the venue. However, many venues that allow you to put on concerts will want you to have a policy with a minimum general liability coverage of $1 million. ESP has up to $10 million in General Liability capabilities in-house. You might need more depending on the venue’s size and any unusually dangerous aspects it may have.
How Much Can You Expect To Pay for Concert Insurance?
The amount you might pay for concert insurance varies according to several factors. These include:
- Where the event is taking place
- Whether alcohol is being served
- How many people are expected to attend
- The event’s duration
- The musical genre of the concert
- The safety protocols (who is handling security?)
- And more
If you contact ESP at (877) 670-2377 or via email, we’ll be happy to give you a personalized concert insurance quote just as soon as you furnish us with all the requisite event details.
Go Ahead We Have Got You Covered!
FAQs About Concert Insurance
Do I need to have concert event cancellation insurance?
It’s always a smart idea to get concert event cancellation insurance. As excitement for a concert builds, it might seem unlikely that anything could prevent it from happening. Think about all the unforeseen events the world can throw at you, though. The band’s lead singer might get ill and need to spend some time at home recovering. A significant weather event might keep the musicians from getting to the venue, causing the band to cancel. Getting an insurance quote for event cancellation and having such a policy in place will seem like a wise choice on your part if such things ever happen.
What if I’m planning to have a concert in a private home?
Nothing says you need to rent a concert hall or some other large facility to accommodate a band. If you know someone with a private home big enough to be a makeshift concert venue and you can find a band willing to play there, that can be the recipe for a fun time for all the guests lucky enough to attend. Even in these circumstances, though, you need concert insurance.
Obtaining specialized event insurance is crucial to protect yourself against injuries or mishaps at such gatherings.
What if a venue where I’m booking a band already has commercial liability insurance?
It’s a common misconception that if you’re booking a concert at a venue with commercial liability insurance, you don’t need to purchase an additional policy. Nothing could be further from the truth, though. You still need to get a separate concert insurance policy, even if the venue where you’re holding the event already has commercial liability insurance. In many cases, you’ll find that a venue will demand a certificate of insurance when you book the event. You can get this from the company that gives you the concert insurance policy.
Can I get concert insurance for different lengths of time?
Yes, you can. You can get a concert event insurance policy that covers a single day or several days. The latter variety is very useful if you’re booking a band that will be in residence at a venue over a holiday weekend or anything along those lines.
