UK live events industry receives £750m Covid reinsurance cover

Government-backed plan will cover live events against cancellation risk due to Covid-19 pandemic

Britain launched a government-backed reinsurance plan totalling more than £750 million on Thursday to cover live events against cancellation due to the Covid-19 pandemic after intense industry lobbying.

Insurers stripped coronavirus cover from event cancellation policies after the pandemic took hold last year, prompting top entertainment industry figures such as Andrew Lloyd-Webber to demand a government-backed plan to enable events to go ahead.

Festivals, concerts and exhibitions have already suffered cancellations due to the lack of insurance during the pandemic, despite intensive efforts to limit the health risks for performers, events staff and ticket holders.

Music festival Womad cancelled its July 2021 event, citing the government’s unwillingness to provide insurance support.

The British government is now working with specialist insurance market Lloyd's of London to provide the plan, the Finance Ministry said in a statement.

And events organisers will from September be able to buy extra insurance against cancellation due to government Covid-19 restrictions, alongside standard events insurance.

The insurance will be available from Lloyd's of London syndicates including Beazley, Hiscox and Munich Re, with the government acting as a reinsurer.

“With this new insurance scheme, everything from live music in Margate to business events in Birmingham can go ahead with confidence,” UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said.

Tim Thornhill, director of insurance broker Tysers, said the scheme was “the news that the events industry needed".

It follows a similar £500m backstop for the film and television industry last year, which has supported 610 independent film and TV productions.

However, some industry sources said the new live events plan was limited, as it covers government lockdowns but does not cover broader social distancing restrictions, or artists' or staff illness due to Covid-19.

Paul Reed, chief executive of the Association of Independent Festivals, said it was “imperative” that the government continue to work with the industry to “ensure that organisers can plan with increased confidence for 2022".