The live events sector is set to get a boost with a world-leading government-backed insurance scheme worth over £750 million, which will help them plan events with confidence through to next year, the Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced yesterday (5 August).
As the economy reopens with the lifting of Covid restrictions, getting the right kind of insurance is acting as a barrier for some events organisers.
So the government has partnered with Lloyd’s to deliver the Live Events Reinsurance Scheme as part of the Plan for Jobs. The scheme will see the government act as a ‘reinsurer’, stepping in with a guarantee to make sure insurers can offer the products events companies need.
The Treasury said: “This scheme will support live events across the UK that are open to the general public. It will cover costs incurred in the event of cancellation due to the event being legally unable to happen due to government Covid restrictions.”
Jamie Njoku-Goodwin, the chief executive of UK Music, said the scheme was good news but that the sector had been warning about the dangers for months. “The inability to obtain insurance has already caused many cancellations this summer – these have been devastating for the entire music industry and there were fears that without action we would have seen major cancellations continuing well into next year too.”
For that reason, the scheme was “incredibly welcome news”, he said, “not just for the millions of music fans who have been looking forward to the return of live events, but also for the tens of thousands of musicians, crew members and wider supply chain workers whose jobs depend on continued live activity”.
Sacha Lord, night-time economy adviser for Greater Manchester, added: “I’m really pleased that the government has decided to introduce an insurance scheme for the events sector.
“DCMS has worked alongside and listened to event organisers throughout the crisis, and I’m grateful that they have now been able to introduce this support today.
“The events sector has been in dire straits throughout this crisis and this move will not only save hundreds of upcoming events, but will support the thousands of freelancers behind the scenes who depend on the sector for their own livelihoods.”
