Event planners, organisers, promoters and coordinators aren’t required by law to insure their events. However, some venues will need you to have (at least) a public liability policy before you can hire them.
What insurance do you need for your event?
Why should you consider events insurance?
When hundreds or thousands of people gather in one place, risks are bound to arise. As an events organiser, the liability for those risks could fall to you.
If, for example, an attendee or a volunteer is injured at your event, they could hold you responsible for their medical bills. And if equipment you hired gets damaged – whether you were at fault or not – you might have to cover the cost of repairs.
The right cover can also bring peace of mind to you and others. Having events and entertainment insurance in place speaks volumes about the care and professionalism you provide.
Why Marsh?
Find out why we’re trusted by events organisers – and associations – across Australia.
Frequently asked questions
Your certificate of currency – also known as a certificate of insurance – expires on the same date as your event insurance policy. Event insurance only covers a single event, so it can’t be renewed.
Event insurance is a one-off insurance policy designed to cover a single event (which could span more than one day). Entertainment industry insurance is designed for event planners and organisers who plan to put on more than one event in a calendar year.
Wondering if you need entertainment insurance? Speak to our entertainment team to arrange the right policy for you.
If an incident occurs, contact the Marsh events team as soon as you can. We want you to get the best possible outcome, so we will advocate for you throughout the entire claims process.
Claims can be stressful, but – as the world’s largest insurance broker – we strive to make the process straightforward.
Yes. You can contact Marsh at any time to add a new interested party to your certificate of currency.
There are many reasons why insurance is important for event organisers to consider. By their very nature, events are prone to a number of risks including accidents, injuries, property damage and cancellations due to unforeseen disruptions.
Some examples of things that can go wrong at an event may include:
- Someone suffers an injury – it could be someone organising, attending or working at the event.
- Property or equipment is damaged, stolen or lost
- The event is cancelled due to circumstances out of your control (eg performer illness, bad weather, power failure).
Insurance can help protect your event from potential lawsuits or financial loss, allowing you to recover some or all of your money, and giving you peace of mind that you’re covered for unexpected circumstances. Ultimately, it can mean the difference between running your event – or not.
Our specialist broking team can arrange insurance for you, including public liability insurance. All you need to do is provide some details on this form and one of our brokers will reach out to you to assist.
It depends. It can vary depending on the type of event, format, attendees, location, the level of cover you wish to have, or any additional feature you want added to the policy. We have an online insurance option to cover events. Talk to a broker about your options and a quote
Despite planning an event to the nth degree, there are some incidents you simply can’t control. A headliner cancelling at the last minute, a serious injury to one of your patrons or a theft of expensive equipment among them.
It pays to have protection in place in case things go awry. Marsh has arranged insurance for a variety of event-industry clients, including:
Australian Grand Prix
Clipsal 500
Paspaley Polo in the City
Food and Wine Festival
Speech Pathology Conference
Flight Centre Conference
Adelaide Symphony Orchestra.
Even if you run your events business from home, you’re still exposed to certain risks.
Accidents can happen in your own space – and you can still face allegations of improper advice, professional negligence and more.
Consider whether professional indemnity insurance and public liability insurance can help protect your business.
No. The event insurance policy is only suitable for one-off events.
If you’re planning to host more than one event in a calendar year, you will need to take out entertainment insurance. Speak to our Events team for help in arranging an entertainment policy.
Event Cancellation & Abandonment: Covers your financial loss when your event is cancelled/abandoned or postponed due to events outside of your control.
Non-Appearance: Covers your financial loss if key headline acts or a large portion of the performance group fail to show up.
Public Liability & Event Liability: Covers your legal liability for third party bodily injury or property damage.
Weather Risk: Protects revenue from fluctuations when certain weather conditions occur.
Voluntary Workers Personal Accident: Protects your volunteers if they are injured whilst working on your behalf.
Travel: Covers medical expenses, trip cancellation costs, lost luggage and trip deposits.
Event Equipment Cover: Covers the equipment you own or use at an event if it is damaged or lost.
Money: Covers physical loss or damage occurring to money during an insured event.
Forms and documents
Additional cover we can arrange
LCPA 24/203
Marsh Advantage Insurance Pty Ltd (ABN 31 081 358 303, AFSL 238369) (“Marsh”) arranges the general insurance (i.e. not the Discretionary Trust Arrangement) and is not the insurer. This page contains general information and does not take into account your individual objectives, financial situation or needs. For full details of the terms, conditions and limitations of the covers, refer to the specific policy wordings and/or Product Disclosure Statements available from Marsh on request. Marsh makes no representation or warranty concerning the application of policy wordings or the financial condition or solvency of insurers or re-insurers. Marsh makes no assurances regarding the availability, cost, or terms of insurance coverage. Any statements concerning actuarial, tax, accounting, or legal matters are based solely on our experience as insurance brokers and risk consultants and are not to be relied upon as actuarial, accounting, tax, or legal advice, for which you should consult your own professional advisors. The Discretionary Trust Arrangement is issued by the Trustee, JLT Group Services Pty Ltd (ABN 26 004 485 214, AFSL 417964) (“JGS”). Any advice or dealing in relation to the Discretionary Trust Arrangement is provided by JLT Risk Solutions Pty Ltd (ABN 69 009 098 864, AFSL 226 827) (“JLT”). JGS and JLT are businesses of Marsh McLennan. The cover provided by the Discretionary Trust Arrangement is subject to the Trustee’s discretion and/or the relevant policy terms, conditions and exclusions.