Event planner insurance is a specialized protection program for the planners of birthday parties, weddings, conventions, trade shows, festivals, concerts, and other events. It offers liability and casualty insurance products for business income loss, lawsuits, employee injuries, and property damage. Read this guide to know:
How the different types of business insurance for event planners work
How much coverage to get as an event planner
The cost of premiums
Where to get the best coverage
These are the common types of insurance for event planners you can buy online, through a broker, or insurance agent:
General liability insurance
Professional liability insurance
Commercial auto insurance
Workers compensation insurance
Commercial property insurance
Rental equipment insurance
Some of these policies are required by law. If you have employees, then you need to get workers compensation insurance to avoid fines and penalties. Of course, commercial auto insurance is a must if you use a vehicle for commercial purposes.
General liability insurance is essential for your work. You need to have at least $1 million-$2 million worth of this event planner insurance coverage. Here are some situations where general liability insurance is useful:
An independent contractor is installing lighting for the event. He falls from a height and sustains a fracture. The contractor wants you to pay for his injury
A client files a claim after sustaining a broken hip caused by tripping over a loose cable in the event venue
A lighting was loosely installed. It dropped on someone. The victim was admitted to the hospital for a concussion
Most clients will require you to get general liability insurance. This policy sees to it that you can indemnify them if someone sustains bodily injuries or property damage during the event.
Also, most landlords of event venues will need you to add them as an additional insured in your general liability insurance. It’s nearly impossible to book a place if you’re not insured.
Event planner liability insurance takes care of these costs each time a claim for property damage or bodily injuries is filed against you by clients, independent contractors, vendors, and other third parties:
Medical treatments for the injuries you caused
Refunds for the property you damaged
Attorney fees, court filing fees, investigation fees, and other legal defense expenses
Court judgments
Insurance companies underwrite general liability insurance for event planners as a broad-form policy. And so, its language doesn’t only have the function of public liability insurance for event organisers and also protects you against:
Claims for slander, libel, and copyright infringement
Liability over damage to a rented venue
Third-party claims filed after you planned an event
Accidents caused by a borrowed or hired commercial auto
Event planning is a hectic job. There are many things to look after, such as the delivery of key items, renting equipment, booking venues, securing key persons, and more.
It’s easy to commit oversights. This is why most event planners get a $1 million-$2 million professional liability insurance for event planners aside from general liability insurance.
Also called errors and omissions insurance or professional indemnity insurance, this inclusion in your event management insurance covers claims filed because your service has significant flaws. Professional liability insurance is useful when:
A client accuses you of providing substandard service that’s not equal to the amount they paid for
A client accuses you of bailing out of an event planning project to cater to another client who gives more commission
You forgot to secure key persons for the event. As a result, the client’s event got canceled
Each time a claim for negligence, misrepresentation, violation of good faith, violation of fair dealing, inaccurate advice, and missed deadlines is filed, professional liability insurance will cover these costs on your behalf:
Settlements
Defense costs
Court judgments
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Traveling is a part of an event planner’s daily tasks. Having commercial auto insurance is useful if you own and use a passenger van, sedan, pickup or any other vehicle to meet clients, transport equipment, or visit vendors and independent contractors.
Commercial auto insurance covers the unfortunate events that can happen while you’re using a vehicle for business purposes. Use this inclusion in event organizer insurance to:
Cover the medical treatment of third parties you injured or inflicted property damage through an auto accident
Cover maintenance expenses if your car got damaged because of fire, theft, vandalism, weather, or collision
Cover your own medical treatment and the passenger’s medical treatment if your auto got involved in an accident caused by an uninsured or underinsured driver
Get reimbursement for vehicle rental or public transportation fees
Workers' compensation insurance covers the occupational diseases or injuries sustained by your part-time or full-time employees. Independent contractors might also ask you to name them as additional insureds in this event organiser insurance policy.
Most states require workers' compensation insurance. Though expensive, consider getting the policy because it will fully cover these expenses on your behalf:
Surgeries, therapies, lab tests, and other expenses for medical treatment
Costs for prescription medicines
Food, room, nursing, and other hospital bills
Employee rehabilitation and retraining
Lost wages of an employee
Employee funeral expenses and allowance to dependents
Workers' compensation insurance has no set limits. The amount of coverage an employee can get from this policy is provided by the worker's comp law of the state where you’re working as an event planner.
If you’re working solo, then there’s no need to get this type of event organizer insurance. Nonetheless, it’s best to insure yourself with the policy in order to have a countermeasure second to your health insurance plan.
Building an office and buying furniture for it costs a lot of money. Moreover, laptops and printers are never cheap. You have a lot of valuables to protect. The most effective way to do this is by getting commercial property insurance.
Commercial property insurance protects your office, whether it’s owned, leased, rented, or a private space at home. This event coordinator insurance policy will recover your losses if the event planning office gets damaged or destroyed by:
Fire
Theft
Vandalism
Civil commotion
Riot
Sinkhole collapse
Volcanic action
Impact
Vehicle
Aircraft
Lightning
Rain
Hail
Snow
Winds
Sprinkler leakage
You can also insure your office’s contents with commercial property insurance. By doing so, you can get reimbursement for losses if the perils we mentioned damage or destroy computers, important documents, cash, credit cards, cameras, furniture, tablets, and other valuables.
Commercial property insurance can be endorsed with a customer property floater. A customer property floater allows commercial property insurance to grant indemnification if the property of clients gets damaged while in your care, control, and custody.
While not usually included in most event and party planner insurance plans, rental equipment insurance is also useful for your work. You need this to rent sound systems, tables, chairs, and other equipment for events.
Most equipment rentals will require you to get a rental equipment policy that lasts for a few hours or days. As an event organizer, you need $5,000-$15,000 rental equipment insurance.
Rental equipment insurance sees to it that you can reimburse losses or provide a replacement piece in case a hired equipment gets damaged or lost because of theft, malicious mischief, and other covered perils.
Wedding planner insurance is a tailored coverage for event planners specializing in weddings. This is available as a one-day or long-term insurance policy. Inclusions are general liability insurance with products and completed operations coverage, professional liability insurance, commercial auto insurance, and workers' compensation insurance.
Event management public liability insurance is a specialty public liability coverage for big event planning agencies. It provides up to $10 million worth of coverage for personal injury and property damage claims. You also get coverage for tax audit proceedings and workplace injuries or diseases.
One day event planner insurance is a short-term general liability policy having the language of public liability insurance for charity events, birthdays, and gatherings in its terms. It grants temporary protection against claims for bodily injuries or property damage.
Insurance companies that offer this policy are Thimble, Hiscox (in partnership with Thimble), and The Hartford (in partnership with Putty).
One quick way to determine the event planner insurance cost is to look at the pricing of each insurance policy. The table below shows the rates of general liability, professional liability, and other insurance for event planners:
Cost per Year | Cost per Month | |
---|---|---|
General liability insurance | $27 | $324 |
Professional liability insurance | $33 | $396 |
Workers compensation insurance | $42.83 | $513.96 |
Commercial auto insurance | $45 | $540 |
Commercial property insurance | $30 | $360 |
Expect to pay $27 per month or $324 per year for a $1 million general liability insurance, if you're an event planner with 5 employees and generate a revenue of $500,000-$750,000 per year. In connection, here’s a table showing the rates of recommended insurance companies.
Cost per Month | Cost per Year | Best for | |
---|---|---|---|
NEXT | $17 | $204 | Best overall; Fastest general liability insurance for event planners |
CoverWallet | $20 | $240 | Event planner insurance quotes comparison online |
Tivly | $22 | $264 | Comparing event planner insurance quotes over the phone |
Thimble | $25 | $300 | Scalable event planner insurance |
Hiscox | $34 | $408 | Event planner insurance with generous liability policy limits |
Progressive | $38 | $456 | Event planner commercial auto insurance |
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These are the best event planner insurance companies. Read some of the reviews below to know their pros, cons, and rate for a $1 million general liability insurance.
Best overall
Get an online proof of insurance and send as a text message, email, or social media post
Fastest general liability insurance for event planners
Great customer service and reputation
Issues an online proof of insurance instantly
Outstanding value for money
Bundle two or more event planner insurance policies and get a 10% discount
Couldn't find any
NEXT is available in all 50 states. In other words, it can cover you regardless of where you are. Policies included in NEXT’s event planner insurance are general liability, professional liability insurance, commercial auto insurance, workers compensation insurance, and commercial property insurance.
Best for: Best overall; Fastest general liability insurance for event planners
Average cost: $17 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Get the quotes of different carriers within minutes
Compare pricing and offers before deciding to get insured
Get insured online within minutes
Policy cancellation takes 30 days to be processed
CoverWallet has an online quotes comparison platform where you can find insurance companies that offer coverage for event planners. Get quotes within minutes, compare the pricing of companies, and let CoverWallet insure you instantly.
Upon getting insured, CoverWallet allows you to pay premiums and get a certificate of insurance online. Furthermore, this company won’t mind if you decide to cancel your policy at any given time. Lastly, CoverWallet’s online insurance agents are available online to help resolve issues regarding claims filing and policy cancellation.
Best for: Event planner insurance quotes comparison online
Average cost: $20 per month
Our rating: 10/10
A partner of reputable insurance companies
Call and compare event planner insurance quotes over the phone
Responsive customer service
You need to call to get a quote
Tivly (formerly CommercialInsurance.NET) is a partner of many insurance companies. Customers who can’t get covered by some carriers are referred to this company. Policies you can get from Tivly are general liability, workers compensation, professional liability, and commercial auto insurance.
Call Tivly now, talk to a representative, compare event planner insurance quotes over the phone, and get covered.
Best for: Comparing event planner insurance quotes over the phone
Average cost: $22 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Easy to use insurance management platform
File a claim online
Contact customer service online
Some customers reported that Thimble takes time to process claims
Thimble’s event planner insurance offers general liability insurance and professional liability insurance. Get it if you’re looking for an insurance policy that provides coverage for only hours, weeks, days, or months.
Best for: Scalable event planner insurance
Average cost: $25 per month
Our rating: 9/10
Quick to respond to claims
Coverage extends around the world
Highly-trained agents
A little slow to get a quote
Hiscox started as a marine insurance underwriter for Lloyd’s of London, but the company has moved into niche insurance over the course of the past few decades.
Hiscox offers a specific policy for event planners who have all of the insurance that is needed. This includes general liability coverage, professional liability insurance, and BOPs for those looking for more comprehensive coverage. The company also offers a wide range of add-ons.
Best for: Event planner insurance with generous liability policy limits
Average cost: $34 per month
Our rating: 8/10
Customizable insurance policies
Easy to get a quote
Quick claims responsiveness
Expensive
Progressive has always prided itself on being one of the world’s most innovative insurance companies, and they’ve certainly proved that throughout their history. This company was one of the first to pioneer the online claims process, and this is a reputation that follows to this day.
Progressive offers insurance in this industry under its event planner insurance policy, which combines a few different forms of coverage. For example, it features general liability coverage, professional liability coverage, and even commercial auto insurance. The policy optionally includes a BOP as well.
Best for: Event planner commercial auto insurance
Average cost: $38 per month
Our rating: 7/10
This place is an absolute joke of a company and should be ashamed of the way they conduct business. I was hurt on the job at the end of July and it took them just shy of 7 weeks to issue out a paycheck to me. Yes the amount was back dated but still. Not many have the luxury of not receiving a paycheck for almost 2 months. To top it all off, the original adjuster marked me down for the wrong state which caused a problem from the get go, I've had 3 different adjusters now since each one can't seem to figure out the simplicity of my claim. All my paperwork which includes, my job, house, and drs visits all are from the same state and city but yet some how I have been filed under a completely different state 1500 miles away. They do not answer your phone calls or emails no matter how many you leave. I've had to escalate my frustrations to the supervisors of each of these individuals in order to even get some kind of response. I've had more communication and information given to me about my claim from the customer service representatives then the actual adjusters.......... please tell me how that works?! A serious overhaul needs to happen here in order to serve your clients the way they deserve to be taken care of. 10/10 do not recommend this company to a single soul on earth
I have never had the displeasure of working with a more incompetent and disrespectful person in my life. I’m an injured worker and the adjuster that was assigned to my case was named Carrie Furgeson. In the past 6 weeks that I’ve been injured and out of work I have only been able to get ahold of her twice, not for lack of trying. I have left countless voicemails, countless emails, and she ignores them all. When I am finally able to get ahold of her I’m greeted with terrible customer service. She is rude, she talks over me and I’m hardly able to get a word in edgewise. She spelled my name wrong on my documents even after I spelled it for her properly countless times, this caused a whole new issue with my bank. I have bill collectors from the hospital calling me demanding payment and Carrie Furgeson won’t do a single thing to help, or to get them paid. All of my documentation is in Colorado, my job is in Colorado, my address is in Colorado, all my Dr offices and appointments have been in Colorado and Carrie still managed to hold my claim because she wasn’t sure what state she needed to file it under. It’s been 6 weeks since my Injury and my company still hasn’t received the wage paperwork to fill out so they can get me my correct wages. When she’s not ignoring me she’s answering my questions with “I don’t know” well I don’t know how she got this job, because apparently she doesn’t know anything about it. She is a disgusting morose individual inside and out and I genuinely wish her the worst in all of her future endeavors. I highly recommend you don’t use this company. Please if you are a business owner and your looking into this company please don’t use them. I’m sure they have the cheapest payment and that’s why companies use them in the first place, but you will be doing your employees a grave disservice by forcing them to venture into this absolute dumpster fire of a company. I would rate 0/5 if possible but 1 was the lowest I was allowed.
Their general liability insurance purchase process is simply the best online experience I've ever had in my life!
As long as they cover your line of business, you're literally covered! best rates, best coverage, best online experience, best professionals, can't be happier that I chose them!
It really can't get any better than this... wow