Commercial General Liability Insurance for performing musici

[Robin Henkel]

Does anyone have or know about Commercial General Liability Insurance for performing musicians? I've run into this twice on contracts for providing live music for the city or state.

[MIDI Life Crisis]

Does anyone have or know about Commercial General Liability Insurance for performing musicians? I've run into this twice on contracts for providing live music for the city or state.

Generally, you can just sign a waiver of that clause. Sure, they'd like you to have $1M insurance but it just ain't gonna happen if they're not paying a consummate amount in fees and the audience is under 1500 or so. Even then, the venue is usually covered sufficiently. Self producing in a theater or elsewhere is a different animal and getting "umbrella" coverage thru a local non-profit arts organization can sometimes be obtainable. Unless you're doing a lot of shows for very good money, that kind of insurance is not practical financially. Then again, if you are doing that many shows, you probably have a manager who is handling it for you.

They also want you to carry unemployment insurance and a host of other things to protect their asses, not yours. Unless you're doing fireworks or acrobatics, I'd argue for a waiver of the policy.

[Robin Henkel]

Thanks for your response MIDI Life Crisis.

[MIDI Life Crisis]

Now that I've seen your website I understand why they want insurance. Maybe the car (Buick? Olds?) onstage was speeding? LOL

[HCMarkus]

It has been known to happen that performers submit a copy of their $1m personal umbrella declarations page to venues who didn't know enough to ask whether the policy actually would cover a loss at a gig. But don't let that speaker fall on someone's head...

[James Steele]

Now that I've seen your website I understand why they want insurance. Maybe the car (Buick? Olds?) onstage was speeding? LOL

Robin!! Hey... Robin is a good friend and awesome blues musician here in San Diego! Dude... haven't seen you in forever! We gotta go grab breakfast (finally) again soon!

[mikehalloran]

Does anyone have or know about Commercial General Liability Insurance for performing musicians? I've run into this twice on contracts for providing live music for the city or state.

It is the responsibility of the producer. If someone else is hiring you then you aren't the producer.

If the band also produces the concert, then yes, the band would be responsible for insurance. The band books the hall, hires the stage hands, security etc., contracts with the ticket services, pays the publishers (or PROs), benefits from the parking... If the band isn't responsible for all that, then they aren't producing the show.

Understanding the role of the producer is the key here.

Municipalities often don't understand that, when they do the hiring, it is they and not you who produce the concert. So some city clerk assistant drags out this form and tells you that you need to sign it before you play. Even worse, they flash it for a free or benefit not knowing that, even though no money changes hands, they are still in charge, not you, and are responsible should something go wrong.

I have never had it come to the point where my attorney had to tell the city attorney about one of these. Usually, you get this from a clerk or assistant who is new and doesn't yet understand. A call to the head of the department or city attorney's office makes it go away.

Signing something like that, hoping that accidents won't happen is a really, really bad idea.