Expected attendance, seated or standing
How many people, and whether they are seated or standing. A seated dinner for 500 and a standing crowd of 500 are rated differently.
EVENT INSURANCE
What You Need for an Event Insurance Quote
Underwriters price events on a short list of facts. Have them ready and the quote can often move more quickly. Here is what they ask, the four questions that come first, a free risk management plan template, and how far ahead to start.
4Questions that qualify the risk
90 daysStart public liability where possible
FreeRisk management plan template
OnlineProposal form, phone or computer
Premiums and outcomes described are specific to this client and indicative only. Your own terms will depend on your circumstances and the insurer.
THE SHORT ANSWER
What do I need for an event insurance quote?
To get an event insurance quote you need the expected attendance and whether the crowd is seated or standing, the turnover of the event or organiser, whether alcohol is served, and whether the venue is private or public. For a full quote, underwriters also ask for the event budget, the run sheet, the risk management plan, security arrangements, single or multi-day dates, details of stages and structures, and any claims history. Cancellation quotes need the full itemised budget, plus revenue history if you insure gross revenue. Start public liability around 90 days out where you can.
You can complete our online event proposal form on your phone or computer.
- First four questions
- Attendance, turnover, alcohol, venue
- Risk management plan
- Ideal to have (some events require one), free template below
- Public liability
- Start around 90 days out
- Cancellation
- Bound and paid before the event
Our events specialist
Shaneel Gounden
Account Executive
Four questions qualify most event risks: expected attendance and whether it is seated or standing, the turnover of the event or organiser, whether alcohol is served, and whether the venue is private or public. Everything else builds on those.
Previously in the Entertainment and Sports team at Marsh, placing event liability, cancellation and prize cover, then in events at Aon.
General information only. It does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Consider the relevant PDS and TMD before deciding, and cover is subject to the policy terms.
Turnover
The turnover of the event, or of the organiser if you run events as a business. It is a main rating basis for liability.
Is alcohol being served?
And if so, who holds the liquor licence, whether bar staff hold responsible service of alcohol certificates, and how many bars there are.
Private or public venue?
A hired function venue, a council park or hall, private land or a public road. It changes the exposure and who needs to be noted on the certificate.
| Item | What to have ready | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| Attendance | Expected numbers per day, peak crowd, seated or standing | PL and cancellation |
| Budget | The full itemised budget: venue, production, artists, marketing, staffing | Cancellation (sets the sum insured) |
| Revenue and turnover | Ticket, sponsorship and other income; revenue history if insuring gross revenue | PL and cancellation |
| Run sheet | What happens when, including bump-in and bump-out days | PL |
| Risk management plan | Ideal to have, and some underwriters, councils and venues require one for larger events: hazards, controls, first aid, emergency and evacuation arrangements, site map for outdoor events. Our free template below walks you through it | PL and cancellation |
| Security | Who provides it, guard numbers, and whether the contractor carries its own insurance | PL |
| Dates | Single day or multi-day, and set-up and pack-down dates | PL and cancellation |
| Alcohol | Licence holder, RSA certificates, number of bars and bar staff | PL |
| Venue | Private or public, indoor or outdoor, and any venue or council insurance requirements | PL and cancellation |
| Stages and structures | Supplied by the venue, a contractor with its own insurance, or by you | PL |
| Participants | For sporting or mass participation events: waivers, medical certificates, road closures and authority notifications | PL |
| Claims history | Any prior claims for the event or the organiser, open or closed | PL and cancellation |
Underwriters generally look closely at the risk management plan on larger or public events. At least one specialist underwriter's proposal form asks for a copy once any one event reaches 2,000 people, along with a site map for larger outdoor events. It should cover the hazards at your event and the controls for each: crowd management, first aid, emergency and evacuation procedures, alcohol management, weather, and who is responsible for what.
On harder events, the plan can decide whether terms are offered. Before the submission goes to market, we point out what underwriters are likely to ask about in your plan, so you can address it with your own safety advisers. Responsibility for the plan and the event's safety stays with you. Security provided by a licensed contractor with its own insurance, and stages or structures from an insured third party, both strengthen the submission.
No plan yet? If you have never written one, our free template sets out the sections underwriters look for: event details, roles, site map, a hazard register with example hazards, crowd, security, alcohol, first aid, weather, emergencies, contractors and incident reporting. Fill in what applies to your event and send it with your quote request.
Download the event risk management plan template (Word)
The template is general information to help you organise the details insurers ask for. It is not safety, work health and safety or legal advice, and it does not replace any plan or approval your venue, council or WHS law requires.
Public liability
Aim to have public liability sorted around 90 days before the event where you can. In our events specialist's experience, many insurers will not release single-event terms much earlier than that.
The annual policy option
If you need cover confirmed further out, an annual policy that includes the event is another way to secure it early, and it can price competitively against single-event cover, depending on the calendar. It also covers the business for the rest of the year.
Cancellation
Cancellation cover has to be bound and paid before the event, often weeks ahead. Large festivals should start the conversation six to twelve months out.
Certificates of currency
Venues and councils usually need a certificate of currency before they approve a booking or permit, and councils may need one for grant funding. Work back from their deadline, not the event date.
Council processes can run well ahead of the event. Road closures, temporary structures and liquor approvals all take time, and councils generally want the certificate of currency as part of the application. See council venue insurance requirements and what a certificate of currency is.
You can complete our online event proposal form on your phone or computer. It is built around the questions underwriters ask about public liability, cancellation, weather and non-appearance.
If you do not have everything yet, send what you have through the quote form below. The four questions above are enough for us to start, and we will tell you what else the underwriter needs.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Event Insurance Quote FAQs
At minimum: expected attendance and whether the crowd is seated or standing, the turnover of the event or organiser, whether alcohol is served, and whether the venue is private or public. For a full quote, underwriters also want the budget, the run sheet, the risk management plan, security arrangements, the dates and any claims history.
It is ideal to have one, and it can be what decides terms on larger or public events. Underwriters generally look closely at the plan on those events, and at least one specialist underwriter's proposal form asks for a copy once any one event reaches 2,000 people. If you have not written one before, our free event risk management plan template walks you through it section by section.
In our events specialist's experience, many insurers will not quote a single event much more than about 90 days out. If you need cover confirmed earlier, for example for a venue booking or a grant application, an annual policy that includes the event is another way to secure cover early. Cancellation cover has to be bound and paid before the event, often weeks ahead.
Once the policy is bound and paid, the certificate of currency can usually be issued promptly. The time goes into getting terms, so send the attendance, turnover, alcohol and venue details as early as you can, together with the council's exact wording for the limit and the interested party it wants noted.
Yes. You can complete our online event proposal form on your phone or computer. It asks the questions underwriters need, and it comes straight to our events team.
Underwriters prefer security, and any stages or temporary structures the venue does not supply, to be provided by third-party contractors carrying their own public liability. Many also ask whether stallholders and exhibitors hold their own cover. Collect the certificates before the event, because the underwriter may ask to see them.
QUOTE REQUEST
Start your event insurance quote
Expected attendance, seated or standing, turnover, alcohol and the venue are enough to get started. Add the date and what the venue or council has asked for.
Specialist broker review Australian business insurance
Have the Details Ready? Let's Get It Sorted
Send us the event details now, or complete the online proposal. We will take it to specialist event markets and come back to you with the options available.