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Events and production
Most UK venues require hirers to hold public liability insurance and to indemnify the venue for claims and damage caused by their event. It matters because the hire agreement, not the policy, decides what you have promised to pay for.
Part of: Event organisers' insurance
In short
When you hire a venue you will usually be asked for a public liability certificate at a set limit, employers' liability if you have staff, an indemnity to the venue and responsibility for damage to the premises. Your policy may not cover all of that: wide indemnities and damage to hired premises are common gaps. Under Martyn's Law, an organiser who controls premises for an event may be responsible, or jointly responsible with the venue, once the duties come into force. Have the hire agreement checked before you sign. Cover is subject to the insurer's acceptance and the policy terms.
Most venue hire agreements ask the hirer to prove insurance before the booking is confirmed, and many ask again a few weeks before the event. The usual requests are:
| Venue request | What it means | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Public liability certificate | Proof you hold cover for injury to people and damage to property arising from your event | The limit matches the contract, the dates are covered and the activities are described correctly |
| Employers' liability | Cover for injury to your staff, usually required if you employ anyone | Volunteers and casual staff are treated as insured |
| Indemnity to the venue | You agree to compensate the venue for claims and losses caused by your event | Whether your policy covers the liability you have taken on by contract |
| Venue named on the policy | The venue is noted as an interested party or covered under an indemnity to principals clause | Whether the insurer will agree it, and on what terms |
| Damage to the venue | You pay for damage to the building, fixtures and fittings | Whether your liability policy covers premises you have hired |
| Contractor certificates | Your caterers, staging and AV firms carry their own cover | Certificates are in date and cover the work |
Limits required vary widely between venues, so read the contract rather than assuming a standard figure. See when a contract requires public liability.
The indemnity clause is often the most important part of the hire agreement for insurance. A narrow clause asks you to indemnify the venue for loss caused by your negligence or your event. A wide clause asks you to indemnify it for any claim connected with the hire, however caused, sometimes including the venue's own negligence.
Liability policies usually cover liability you would have had anyway at law, and may only cover liability you have taken on under contract if the insurer agrees. If you sign a wide indemnity, the gap between what you promised and what your policy pays is yours. Ask your broker to check the clause before you sign, and ask the venue to narrow it where it goes beyond your own fault.
The law limits what a venue can push onto you through exclusions. Under section 2 of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977, a business cannot use a contract term or notice to exclude or restrict liability for death or personal injury resulting from negligence, and other exclusions of negligence liability must satisfy the requirement of reasonableness. Indemnity clauses between businesses are not always treated in the same way as exclusions, so the wording matters. See hold harmless and indemnity agreements.
Hirers are commonly made responsible for damage to the venue during the hire, including set-up and breakdown. Public liability covers damage to third-party property, but many wordings limit or exclude damage to premises you have hired or that are in your care, custody or control. Some offer a hired premises extension with its own limit.
Illustrative: during the get-out after a product launch, a contractor's flight case gouges a sprung dance floor in a hotel ballroom. The hotel invoices the hirer for refinishing and two cancelled bookings. Whether the hirer's policy pays depends on how it treats hired premises, whether loss of the venue's income is covered, and whether the contractor's own insurer should pay instead.
Your own equipment and anything you hire in, such as lighting, staging or AV, is not covered by liability insurance. It needs separate equipment cover; see equipment and kit insurance.
Under section 2 of the Occupiers' Liability Act 1957, an occupier owes visitors the common duty of care, and may extend, restrict, modify or exclude that duty by agreement or otherwise so far as it is free to do so. When you hire a venue, both you and the venue may count as occupiers, depending on how much control each has.
Your hire agreement should say who does what. The Occupiers' Liability Acts explained page covers the detail.
The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 3 April 2025. The Home Office factsheet says premises where 200 to 799 people may be present at the same time are standard duty premises, and 800 or more are enhanced duty premises. Events where 800 or more people may be present at once, with checks on entry such as tickets or passes, can be qualifying events. The Security Industry Authority will regulate the regime.
For hirers, the key question is control. The explanatory notes say the responsible person for an event is whoever controls the premises for the purposes of the event. An organiser who takes control of an area may be responsible; a venue that keeps control remains responsible even if it contracts out tasks. Where more than one person has control they are jointly responsible, and anyone with some control must co-operate.
The government says the implementation period will be at least 24 months from Royal Assent, and there is no requirement to comply until the duties are brought into force. Statutory guidance was published on 15 April 2026. Expect venues to add Martyn's Law clauses to hire agreements. See Martyn's Law for venues and terrorism insurance.
Apex arranges insurance for events and film and TV production. A broker reads each enquiry, including your hire agreement, 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 venue, dates, expected attendance, the activities planned and the insurance clauses in the hire agreement.
See also event organisers' insurance and public liability for event organisers.
Most venues ask for public liability insurance at a limit stated in the hire agreement, and employers' liability if you have staff. Many also ask you to indemnify the venue, cover damage to the premises and show certificates for your contractors. Read the contract first, because the requirements differ between venues.
Not always. Many liability wordings limit or exclude damage to premises you have hired or that are in your care, custody or control. Some policies offer a hired premises extension with its own limit. Check this before the event if the hire agreement makes you responsible for damage.
Ask your broker first. A clause that makes you indemnify the venue for any claim, however caused, can go beyond what your liability policy covers, leaving you to pay the difference. Venues will sometimes narrow the clause to losses caused by you, your guests or your contractors.
It can. For events, the responsible person is whoever controls the premises for the purposes of the event. An organiser who takes control of an area may be responsible, and where both organiser and venue have control they can be jointly responsible. The duties are not yet in force.
Not for death or personal injury caused by its own negligence. Section 2 of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 prevents a business from excluding or restricting that liability by contract or notice. Other exclusions of negligence liability must be reasonable. Indemnity clauses may be treated differently, so the wording matters.
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.
