The owner of a new insurance business says there is a big gap in the New Zealand market for a provider to offer cover for the country’s events industry.
Auckland-based Stuart Hartley has launched EventCover, which is the country’s only underwriting agency focusing exclusively on events providers.
Its policies are underwritten by Sage Partners, a Lloyd’s coverholder.
Hartley said he spotted a need in the market after dabbling in event insurance as a “side hustle”.
He arrived in New Zealand in 2011 and had previously worked as a partnerships manager at Marsh before deciding to start up on his own. “There’s no market in New Zealand to facilitate these risks or anyone who really understands event management, so I decided to do it myself. It’s a good few years in the making.”
Until now, brokers wanting cover for events had had to go overseas to get it.
There had been strong interest from the events industry so far, he said.
“New Zealand is now firmly on the global map as a destination for events, therefore the inherent risks associated with the industry are constantly changing.
“With New Zealand's climate also being quite varied, there may also be a number of reasons for event cancellation due to a weather-related
event. Event organisers and others involved will need to consider those risks as they could vary greatly depending on the location and type
of event.”
He said the 2018 ASB Classic was an event that highlighted
the need – wet weather washed out a day’s play and delayed other
matches but Tennis Auckland had a robust event cancellation policy to protect them.
EventCover offers policies to cover event cancellation, non-appearance, prize promotion and event liability, among other risks.
It only offers deals with insurance brokers. Hartley said the insurance sector would need to be educated about the products on offer to be able to in turn educate the event industry about what protection was available, he said.
“With the main exposures including irrecoverable costs and expenses, contractual obligations, tickets refunds and lost revenue, it pays to work with insurance experts who know [the events] business and anticipate
its needs.”
