You’ve been picked to be the host of an event and you don’t know where to start. Or perhaps you can even call yourself experienced but have simply come across a roadblock you’re unsure how to solve.
There’s no doubt about the fact that hosting an event is difficult. Very difficult, once you take into consideration everything that can go wrong. Unsurprisingly, there are a lot of similarities between being a wartime logistics officer and an event host, other than there being a lack of bullets.
Regardless of how you set up your event, however, one thing is clear – you must purchase insurance. Without it, you are at the mercy of a cruel world that follows the whims and vagaries of bad winds and spirits.
In other words, something might go bad and you might be sued. You definitely do not want that, so here’s a short explanation as to how insurance works together with an example scenario of how your event can fail.
Why Do I Need Insurance?
First of all, let’s address how insurance applies to event hosting in particular. US law states that any guest that suffers from harm or injury on the grounds of a venue location leaves the host directly responsible.
Therefore, if one of your guests is clumsy and manages to sprain an ankle or cut themselves on the very knife you gave them to cut a steak with, then you’re legally responsible. More often than not, given today’s litigious climate, this means a lawsuit that can potentially ruin your financial security.
Even if you think your event has been perfectly planned out, it’s very likely you’ll be surprised at one point or another. There are a lot of inexperienced hosts who think they’ll never be affected by some bad scenario or surprise catastrophe. On the other hand, they usually do not stay in business.
This is because insurance is often a minuscule fraction of what you would otherwise pay in trying to cover up damages. Hiring an attorney is costly, and that’s without even beginning to delineate any additional expenses you might incur.
As such, venue hosts that know what they’re doing always opt for insurance. They’re always aware of the fact that, as Robert Burns famously stated, “The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” You can spend years planning your event only for a freak lightning storm to set your whole venue on fire.
How Your Event Can Go Wrong
In the world of “suing your event host,” slip-and-falls seem to be by far the most common causes of a lawsuit. As described by their name, they happen when a guest loses footing and thus staggers or collapses to the ground, which can indeed attract injury.
The problem, however, is not so much in the potential to injure. As with many other such scenarios, the opportunity to sue primarily arises from principle. The guest might not be hurt, but they’re so mortified you weren’t able to spot that someone spilled champagne where they were about to step literally five seconds beforehand, leaving you a villain in your own domain and the hapless target of a legal crusade.
The above situation, although dramatic, is not as rare as you might think. There is always someone looking to take advantage of our American predisposition towards law and order, and that’s to be expected.
After all, if you didn’t take care of the venue premises, then you really are responsible for their injury.
On the other hand, some people throw lawsuits around like they’re nothing. Protecting yourself with reliable event insurance in such a scenario would be a very wise move.
Shield Yourself Sooner
Rather than stress yourself out when you get unpleasantly surprised later on, take an extra step to add a layer of protection to your livelihood. Insurance can help cover the financial costs associated with any legal troubles that arise after one of your events, so don’t wait until the bad happens and act preemptively.
