Crash! Auto Coverage and Your Festival Insurance
Virtually all festivals use vehicles in the set up, production and take down of their event. However, the risks associated with the use of vehicles are sometimes over looked or at least not given the level of importance it needs. For this reason it is vital that the auto exposure be addressed in your Festival Insurance and Risk Management discussions.
Food for Thought: The Who & What Considerations
- What type of vehicles is being driven and who do they belong to? Are you just using personally owned vehicles do run errands for the festival? If so, what type of insurance coverage exists on the vehicles and is it sufficient? Are you renting vans or trucks to transport people or equipment? Do you purchase the insurance coverage through the rental company? What does that insurance really cover you for?
- Who is driving the vehicles? Employees? Volunteers? Do you know if they are good drivers? Do you require that drivers be a certain age or have a certain number of years of driving experience? Do you require that they have certain experience with certain types of vehicles? What is your policy about paying excess costs associated with damages to personally owned vehicles? Do you require people who drive their own vehicles on behalf of festival business to carry a minimum limit of insurance on their vehicle?
Are You Covered: Important Guidelines and Considerations
- Rental Agreement Coverage: Verify the coverage provided. Is it Liability only or is Physical Damage included? What are the limits? What are your responsibilities in the event of an accident or damage to the vehicle? If you are using a credit card to pay for the rental, does it have any additional coverage provided and how does it work. It’s best to gather this information before taking possession of the vehicle so that you are 100% prepared and feel confident that you are covered properly.
- Coverage on Vehicles owned by the Festival / Event Producer: We recommend minimum coverage of $1,000,000 Combined Single Limit Liability and sometimes more depending on the types of vehicles owned and what they are used for. We recommend fairly high Comprehensive and Collision deductibles on owned vehicles ($1,000 or $2,500) there really is a significant cost savings there. Your Festival or Event Insurance should also include Hired and Non-Owned Auto coverage as will if at all possible.
- Minimum Driver & Vehicle Coverage Requirements: For vehicles owned by employees, volunteers, etc. we recommend you request proof of insurance on those vehicles and that they have a minimum Liability limit of $300,000 (see above comment about Hired & Non-Owned Auto Coverage). If you are agreeing to pay the deductible to damage to vehicles belonging to others then the lower the better. Also, you should have minimal acceptable driver guidelines. We recommend no more than 2 moving violations and no more than 1 accident and no major violations (i.e. DUI’s) within the previous 3 years and that drivers be at least 18 years or older.
Make sure you have an auto usage and coverage policy in place and that it is communicated to all people associated with your festival that might be driving. Also, make sure that you have a procedure in place to check insurance requirements and driver requirements. And, don't get me started on screening all those folks that you have driving Golf Carts and how that affects your Festival Insurance. We have more info on all of the above so if you have questions let us know. And… keep an eye out for our upcoming post on Hired & Non-Owned Auto coverage.
