FCA authorised · FRN 724952 0117 325 0027Quote & buy →
Events and production
Film and TV production insurance is a package covering equipment, props and sets, locations, liability to people and property, cast and errors and omissions for a shoot or slate. It matters because hire companies, locations, financiers and distributors often require it before work starts or a sale closes.
Part of: Events and production insurance
In short
A production package usually combines equipment, props and wardrobe, third-party property, public and employers' liability, with cast insurance, extra expense and errors and omissions where needed. Insurers price on what happens on set, so stunts, drones, children, vehicles and overseas shoots must be declared. Children taking part in recorded performances often need a licence from their local authority. Location agreements commonly make the production liable for damage, and distributors usually require E&O. Cover is subject to the insurer's acceptance and the policy terms.
Film and TV production insurance is normally arranged as a package for a single production or as an annual policy for a production company making several. The sections vary between insurers and wordings, but a package commonly includes:
| Section | What it usually covers | Points to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Equipment | Owned and hired-in cameras, lenses, lighting, grip and sound kit | Theft from vehicles conditions and hire company terms |
| Props, sets and wardrobe | Physical loss or damage to items made, bought or hired for the production | Values of hired and borrowed items |
| Third-party property | Damage to locations and property in your care, such as a house you film in | Limits and excesses for locations |
| Public liability | Injury to the public and damage to their property | Hazardous activities, stunts and drones declared |
| Employers' liability | Injury to your employees, often including some freelancers | How the policy treats freelance crew |
| Cast insurance | Extra costs if a named artist cannot work through illness, injury or death | Medicals and named persons |
| Extra expense and faulty stock | Additional costs to recover the schedule after an insured event, and loss of footage or data | Data handling and backup conditions |
| Errors and omissions | Claims for defamation, copyright and other media rights | Clearance procedures; see below |
Each section is subject to the insurer's acceptance and the policy terms.
Cast insurance pays the additional costs of delay, rescheduling or, in serious cases, abandoning the production when a named artist, director or other key person cannot work because of illness, injury or death. It is usually written for named persons only, and insurers commonly require medical examinations or health declarations before cover starts.
Illustrative: the lead in a six-week drama breaks a wrist in the second week. Filming is rescheduled around her scenes and two location days are lost. A cast claim might pay the extra crew, location and equipment costs of the delay, less the excess, if she was a named insured person and the injury was not excluded.
Location agreements usually make the production responsible for damage to the property and for injury to people on site during filming. Location owners commonly ask for a certificate of public liability and sometimes for a deposit.
If your crew takes control of a location, you may be treated as an occupier as well as the owner. Under section 2 of the Occupiers' Liability Act 1957, an occupier owes visitors the common duty of care, and must be prepared for children to be less careful than adults. Damage to the location itself is often dealt with under a third-party property or property in your care section rather than standard public liability, so check which section applies and its limit.
Filming in public places usually needs permission from the local authority or landowner, which may set its own insurance conditions. For event-style shoots and live audiences, see public liability for event organisers and venue hire insurance requirements.
Productions using children need to plan for licensing as well as insurance. The Department for Education's departmental advice explains that section 37 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1963 requires a licence before a child takes part in certain performances, including live broadcasts and recorded performances intended for broadcast or public film exhibition. A licence may be needed whether or not the child is paid.
Tell your insurer when children are involved. Public liability and employers' liability wordings, and any personal accident cover, should reflect who is on set.
Insurers price productions on what happens on set. Activities commonly excluded unless declared and agreed include stunts, pyrotechnics and special effects, working at height or on water, animals, aircraft and drones, and filming abroad in higher-risk territories.
Under the Insurance Act 2015, a business must make a fair presentation of the risk. A production that adds a stunt sequence or overseas shoot after cover starts should tell the insurer before it happens.
Distributors and broadcasters commonly ask for errors and omissions (E&O) insurance before they will take a finished production. It covers legal liability for claims such as defamation, infringement of copyright or other rights, and breach of privacy or confidence, subject to the wording. Insurers usually require evidence of clearance procedures before cover is agreed. Our page on media errors and omissions insurance for film and TV explains what underwriters look for.
Apex arranges insurance for events and film and TV production. A broker reads each enquiry and comes back with options, with no fee for a quote; cover is subject to the insurer's acceptance and the policy terms. To quote we need your business activities, turnover, location and claims history, plus the production type and budget, shoot dates and locations, equipment values, named cast, any children, stunts or drones, and whether E&O is needed.
See also film equipment and kit insurance, events and production insurance and insurance for creative businesses.
Usually a production package covering equipment, props and sets, third-party property, public liability and employers' liability, with cast insurance and extra expense where the budget justifies it. Distributors and broadcasters commonly require errors and omissions cover before they accept the finished production. The mix depends on the shoot and its contracts.
Cast insurance pays the extra costs of delay, rescheduling or abandonment when a named artist or key crew member cannot work through illness, injury or death. Insurers usually require medicals or health declarations and may exclude pre-existing conditions. It does not normally cover refusal to work or contract disputes.
Often yes. Section 37 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1963 requires a licence for children taking part in certain performances, including recorded performances intended for broadcast or film exhibition. The application usually goes to the child's home local authority, and a chaperone approved by the authority must supervise unless a parent or teacher does.
Usually, if the policy includes a third-party property or property in your care section and the damage is not excluded. Standard public liability may not cover property in your control. Check the location agreement, which often makes the production responsible for damage, and match the limit to it.
Not usually as standard. Drones generally need specific aviation liability cover, and many production policies exclude aircraft unless agreed. If you use a drone operator, ask for their insurance certificate and check it covers commercial filming for your production.
Tell us what your business does, your turnover and any claims. A broker reads every enquiry and comes back with options. No fee for a quote. Or call 0117 325 0027.
Start a commercial enquiry Request a callbackApex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales, company number 07014570. This page is general information, not advice on your individual circumstances, and it does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms.
