One-day event insurance, also known as special event insurance, is a policy designed to protect your investment in case you need to cancel the event. Most policies cover several cancellation reasons, including the death or serious illness or injury of a key participant in the event. For example, if the groom dies before the wedding, one-day event insurance will cover it. Most policies will also provide event liability coverage.
- Top 4 Providers of One-Day Event Insurance
- Who Needs One-Day Event Insurance?
- What does One-Day Event Insurance Cover?
- How Much does One-Day Event Insurance Cost?
Top 7 Providers of One-Day Event Insurance
After weighing the pros and cons, and looking into customer service, pricing, and claims service, we recommend the following companies.
- InsurePro: Best for cheap one-day event insurance
- NEXT: Best for a fast and easy digital experience
- Eventhelper.com: Best for Unique Events
- RVNA: Best for Comprehensive Coverage
- Markel: Best for Customizable specialty insurance
- Travelers: Best for Flexible Options
- Simply Business: Best for comparing several quotes of event liability insurance to find the cheapest one
InsurePro: Best for cheap one-day event insurance
InsurePro is a digital small business insurance brokerage firm. They are famous for finding cheap short-term coverage for small businesses in all industries. Of course, they offer cheap one-day event business insurance. Their policy’s coverage focuses on the liability of the event itself. The policy may not cover event cancellation.
Pros:
- Cheap quotes for short-term coverage, ie. one day or a few days
- Fast and easy online experience
- Robust liability coverage for all types of events including concerts, sporting, etc.
Cons:
- Not a specialist in event insurance
- The policy may not cover event cancellation
NEXT: Best for a great digital experience
NEXT is a digital carrier, founded in 2016 and backed by leading venture capital firms and the reputable reinsurance company, Munich Re. They offer an excellent digital experience, from getting a quote online to buying a policy and managing the policy completely online. They are also known for offering reasonable and very competitive rates. The event insurance policy NEXT offers is also for liability coverage only.
Pros:
- Modern carrier with an excellent digital experience
- Backed by the leading venture capital firms and their policies are re-insured by the reputable Munich Re
- Very competitive rates
Cons:
- Relatively new carrier without a historical record yet
- Liability coverage only. No event cancellation coverage
Eventhelper.com: Best for Unique Events
Not only does event helper insure every special event you can think of, from a 10k run to a wedding, rates are very reasonable. You can purchase insurance for an event lasting anywhere from one day to ten days, and they insure all fifty states.
For a retirement party in California with 100 guests, Event helper gave us this quote:
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RVNA: Best for Comprehensive Coverage
RVNA offers event insurance starting at $50 and insures events large and small. They’ve been insuring special events for over 25 years, so they know what’s involved and the type of insurance you need.
For an Anniversary party in California, we said we were holding the event for 200 people and were planning to serve alcohol.
They quoted us:
Markel: Best for Customizable Specialty Insurance
Markel was founded in 1930 and they specialize in specialty insurance. They insure everything from horses to weddings. You can add or change the limits on your policy, change deductibles, or customize your policy in whatever way works for you.
For an anniversary party in CA, Markel gave us a detailed quote:
Travelers: Best for Flexible Options
Travelers gave us the most detailed breakdown of what they could offer us, with what limits. If you like detail, or you just have to know about every option, Travelers spells everything out for you.
They quoted us $265 for an anniversary party with 100 people and alcohol being served.
Simply Business: Best for comparing several quotes to find the cheapest one
Similar to InsurePro, Simply Business is another brokerage firm specializing in small businesses. They also offer event liability insurance. They work with 30+ carriers and focus on helping you find the cheapest quote by comparing several quotes in one place.
Pros:
- Comprehensive event liability insurance coverage
- Easy to get and compare several quotes
- 30+ A+ rated carriers with excellent financial strength
- Great consumer satisfaction rating on trustpilot
Cons:
- Not an event insurance specialist
- They may not offer event cancellation coverage
Who Needs One-Day Event Insurance?
One-day event insurance is most commonly associated with weddings (here is the 4 Best Providers of Wedding Event Insurance) , but can also be for:
- Anniversary parties
- Baby showers
- Birthday parties
- Housewarmings
- Retirement parties
- Sporting events
- Concerts
It’s possible your venue has its own liability coverage, so you need to check with them to find out if you need your own event insurance. They may not cover everything, though, so your own event insurance may still be a good idea. Be sure to ask what is and is not covered under the policy.
It’s also possible your vendors have insurance, too. Be sure to check with them to see what sort of insurance they have and what is covered.
If you’re hosting an event in your home, your homeowners insurance offers some protection, but according to the iii, you can also check your credit cards to see what, if anything, they cover in the case of cancellation.
What does One-Day Event Insurance Cover?
One-day event insurance is a type of insurance that provides coverage for a specific event or activity that takes place over the course of a single day. This type of insurance can cover a wide range of events, including festivals, concerts, sporting events, parties, and more. The specific types of coverage provided by one-day event insurance can vary depending on the policy, but it may include general liability coverage, property damage coverage, and cancellation. It’s important for event organizers to carefully review their insurance needs and choose a policy that provides the right level of protection.
General liability coverage in one-day event insurance
Some common examples of general liability coverage in event insurance policies include:
- accidents that occur during the event, for example, if there is an accident at a sporting event that causes bodily injuries for the attendees and they decide to sue. The general liability coverage in an event insurance policy should cover it
- injuries that occur to guests or attendees
- third-party property damage
Cancellation coverage in one-day event insurance
Depending on the policy, one-day event insurance covers such cancellation reasons as:
- Problems with the site
- Weather
- Vendors
- Key people (like if the guest or guests of honor become sick)
- Sickness
- Injury
- Death
What doesn’t One-Day Event Insurance Cover?
Cancellation insurance won’t help for anything under someone’s control. For example, if you’re hosting an anniversary party and the guests of honor announce their divorce, insurance won’t help you.
Typically, one-day event insurance won’t cover:
- Sporting events (they have their own pricing and policies)
- Bachelor/bachelorette parties
- Corporate fundraisers
- Public events, such as exhibitions
- Dance recitals
How Much does One-Day Event Insurance Cost?
Basic one-day event insurance costs about $120 if you don’t add liquor liability insurance and about $260 if you add it in. Alcohol increases the level of risk, meaning there are many more opportunities for guests to either hurt someone or damage property, so insurance rates reflect that.
Some states require you to have host liquor liability insurance, even if you have a vendor serving the alcohol.
Factors that impact one-day event insurance cost
Several factors can impact the one-day event insurance cost, below are some main ones:
- Location of the event
- If you serve liquor at the event or not
- The number of attendees at the event
- Experience of the event organizer. If this is your first time organizing a big event, it will cost you more than someone who has organized several similar events before
How to find cheap one-day event insurance
One-day event insurance can be expensive if you organize a big event with hundreds or thousands of people attending. You can reduce costs with the following tips:
- Don’t settle on the first quote. Shop around with a few companies to compare several quotes to find the cheapest one
- Be thoughtful about the coverage you actually need. As we mentioned above, one-day event insurance policies can include general liability, product liability, liquor liability, and cancellation coverage. You may not need all of these coverages. Excluding the coverages you don’t need will reduce the premiums.
>>MORE: The Cheapest Event Insurance Companies
Event planner insurance
As a professional event planner, you know that you are exposed to various types of risks on your everyday work. The types of risks an event planner faces in her daily work include but are not limited to:
- Risk of injury while setting up or breaking down an event
- Risk of injury to guests or participants
- Risk of property damage
- Risk of financial loss
- Risk of missed deadlines or poor execution
- Risk of event cancellation due to several reasons
Event planner insurance is insurance that can help protect an event planner from potential liabilities that may arise from the planning and execution of an event. This type of insurance can help cover things like property damage, personal injury, and even cancellation fees.
Wedding event insurance
Wedding event insurance is an insurance policy that covers the costs associated with canceling or postponing a wedding due to unforeseen circumstances, or lost or damaged wedding items. It can also cover the event liability, ie. damages to property or injuries to anyone that occur during the wedding.
This type of insurance is important because it can help protect you from the financial losses associated with canceling or postponing your wedding or being sued for bodily injuries and property damage.
The insurance policy will pay for the venue, catering, and other services. Wedding event insurance may also cover lost deposits or payments if the wedding is canceled.
Last Thoughts
Costs associated with one-day events put a strain on your wallet. No likes to consider the worst-case scenario, but unfortunate circumstances can and do happen. Getting a one-day event policy will give you peace of mind, and let you enjoy the event when it hopefully goes off without a hitch.
>>MORE: Explore our other articles about different types of event insurance: