anyone know where to get liability insurance for a 3 piece band for 1 day?
and how much it would cost?
the event is a wedding reception

the hall requires $1 Mil in Liability

much appreciated....

Generally, the promoter of the event has to have/provide a liability umbrella. It's unusual for the act to be required to have liability coverage, but in every town I've been in, there is always one agency that provides the coverage. I have a charity animal group (free spays, etc.)and we have to provide a certificate of $1,000,000.00 in liability for the two fund-raising events we hold each year. There are lots of dogs and other pets. cost is about $175.00 for the day.

General liability protection is a good thing to have for musicians and is sometimes required. For instance, a lady (drunk as hell) tripped into my bass one night and, you guessed it, sued ME, in spite of the fact that I was just standing on the bandstand.

Oh Well...


Russ

P.S. I'd bet the hall could put you in the right direction. also, the people who are paying for the reception may already have the coverage (or should).

[This message has been edited by captain Russ (edited 03-11-2010).]

captain Russ

this is for a wedding
the bride and groom have nothing to do with insurance

im not incorporated, as mant part time musicians are not

so i need insurance to play at this wedding

i just want to know where i can buy insurance for 1 day

I ran into this problem 4 years ago for a wedding at an american wedding hall. I called some insurance companies from Long Island, (can't remember now, the hall gave it to me) and they wanted $600 for a one day event. I ended up telling the bride to find someone else because 99.9% of the restuarants and halls we play in, do not require it. It came down to that this is really just a part, part time for me, I only do about 12-24 parties a year and the investment was not worth it.

btw, it worked out to be cheaper if you buy the policy for entire year.

The last time someone told me that they required a million dollar liability policy, I told them it was no problem--I'll get the insurance and just add the cost of the policy to their bill. They backed off and never said another word about it.

I did check into this shortly after the job, though, and the cost for a single day event was insanely high. MC is right in that it cost less for year-round coverage. In some instances you can purchase a rider to your Home Owner's policy, which is not nearly as expensive. Not all insurance companies will do this, but it's worth checking out.

Good Luck,

Gary

I don't do big weddings anymore but believe me this is just a ploy because the Bride did not hire one of the caterers "house" bands or recommended DJ's. They pay a big kickback to play there. Sometimes the kick can be 50% of what they charge.
I have a very good longtime friend who went very high up in Prudential and when I hit a similiar situation he told me its all BS, because the house is liable no matter what. Someone tries to sue you, your company will bounce it right back to the caterer. Your on their property.
I have used my homeowners umbrella policy for these occasions. 1 mil coverage for your home costs less than $200 a year. Even if you don't have an umbrella just give them your current homeowners # and carrier. No one is going to check.
Good luck and nice to hear that someone is still using live music for a wedding.

Bill in NJ

Guys, sounds as if they are not requiring it, he just WANTS it for his own protection.
DonM

the hall is REQUIRING it.

the bride really wants US to play her wedding

so i have to find out how much it will cost for 1 day, and
basically add it to HER cost

in the past i was able to sign a WAIVER, but this hall does not give me this option,

who can insure my band for this wedding?

I played a fancy catering complex a couple of months ago. The gig was for a group of lawyers, and when I told them that I would have to add $300.00 for the cost of the 'one day event' insurance policy as required by the facility, they were able to convince the venue to have me sign a waiver that he previously said was not an option. One of the lawyers told told me that he thought that the venue must have had a bad experience in the past. The American and Canadian musicians' unions offer a $1M liability policy for about $140 per year to it's members - that's pretty reasonable.
Ciao,
Jerry

Leezone can you tell me what the perceived risks are for playing a KB at a wedding, KB explodes, guest trips over wire, all guests end up deaf, sounds like a good old USA con to me.

Regards