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Event cancellation insurance
Event cancellation insurance can protect against financial loss if your event has to be cancelled, abandoned, postponed, interrupted, curtailed or relocated for an insured reason. Depending on the basis of cover arranged, a policy can cover irrecoverable costs and expenses, loss of gross revenue or certain additional expenses incurred to avoid or reduce an insured loss. Cover can be arranged for one-off events or for organisations running a series of events during the policy period.
Who is event cancellation insurance for?
Event cancellation insurance can be arranged for organisations and individuals who could suffer a financial loss if an event cannot proceed as planned.
This can include:
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event organisers and promoters;
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conference and exhibition organisers;
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festival organisers;
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live music and concert organisers;
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sporting event organisers;
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charities, clubs and associations;
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businesses and production companies;
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local and community organisations;
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venues arranging their own events;
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individuals organising private events.
If you have committed costs, expect income from your event or could incur additional costs if your event is cancelled, postponed, abandoned or otherwise disrupted, event cancellation insurance can help protect your financial exposure.
What does event cancellation insurance cover?
Event cancellation insurance can cover specified financial losses when an event cannot proceed as planned because of an insured reason. Cover can be arranged to include irrecoverable costs and expenses, loss of gross revenue or certain additional expenses. Alongside cancellation of your event cover can also be arranged to include abandonment, postponement, interruption, curtailment or relocation where required.
Cancellation, abandonment, postponement and interruption can be treated differently, so you should consider these outcomes when arranging your insurance.
- Cancellation: where an event cannot proceed as planned before it starts and cannot be postponed;
- Abandonment: where an event has started but cannot be completed in its entirety;
- Postponement: where an event has to be rearranged for a later date for unavoidable reasons;
- Interruption and curtailment: where an event could be interrupted temporarily or brought to an end earlier than planned;
- Relocation: where an event has to another venue or location before it starts for unavoidable reasons.
What financial losses can event cancellation insurance cover?
The sum insured and basis of cover should reflect the financial exposure you want to protect. Depending on your event this can be based on irrecoverable costs and expenses, gross revenue or another basis agreed with the insurer.
Gross revenue, costs and expenses and profit are different measures of financial loss.
The right basis of cover for you will depend on your event and your financial exposure.
Irrecoverable costs and expenses
Cover can be arranged for event costs and expenses that become irrecoverable following an insured loss.
For example:
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venue hire;
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production costs;
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marketing and advertising;
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hired equipment;
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staging, sound and lighting costs;
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contractor costs;
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catering deposits and other pre-booked services;
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licences, permits and event fees;
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other committed or contracted expenditure.
The exact costs that can be insured will depend on the policy and the basis of cover arranged.
Loss of gross revenue
Where your event is expected to generate income, cover can be arranged on a gross revenue basis.
Declared revenue can include:
- ticket sales;
- admission charges;
- sponsorship income;
- advertising income;
- exhibitor fees;
- pitch fees;
- hospitality income;
- other agreed event income.
The exact revenue that can be insured will depend on the policy and the basis of cover arranged.
Additional expenses
Some policies can cover reasonable additional expenses incurred to avoid or reduce an insured loss. This can include certain additional costs associated with moving, rearranging or continuing the event, where the expenditure falls within the policy terms.
The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men
Gang aft agley.
What can cause an event cancellation insurance claim?
Depending on the insurer and policy, cover can be arranged for circumstances such as:
- physical damage to a venue, such as fire or flood, where covered by the policy;
- denial of access to the venue;
- failure of essential utilities;
- adverse weather, where appropriate weather cover has been arranged;
- non-appearance of a key performer, speaker or other essential person, where non-appearance cover has been arranged;
- terrorism or threat of terrorism, where the relevant extension has been included;
- civil commotion, where specifically covered;
- national mourning, where specifically covered;
- public sentiment, where specifically covered;
- cyber incidents, where the relevant extension has been included;
- computer systems failure, where the relevant extension has been included.
This is not an exhaustive list, and these causes are not automatically covered by every event cancellation policy. For a claim to be covered, both the event outcome and the cause of that outcome must fall within the cover provided by the policy.
Where available and agreed by the insurer, a policy can be extended to include specific risks such as adverse weather, non-appearance or terrorism. If you need cover for these or any other specialist risks, tell us when arranging your insurance.
Does event cancellation insurance cover adverse weather?
Adverse weather is not automatically covered under every event cancellation policy.
Some policies can include limited adverse weather cover, while others might restrict or exclude weather-related losses unless specific cover is arranged. Cover can also vary between indoor and outdoor events. Where adverse weather cover is included, check how adverse weather is defined in the policy and the circumstances that must apply before cover can respond.
If adverse weather could prevent the event from proceeding, interrupt the event or make the venue unusable, check that cover is included and that it meets your requirements.
For events with significant weather exposure, including many outdoor events, it is sensible to arrange cancellation and adverse weather cover early in the planning process.
Adverse weather cover will usually depend on factors such as:
- whether the event is indoors or outdoors
- the financial exposure
- the location of the event
- the time of year
- whether temporary structures will be used
- how far in advance of the event cover is requested
- the event type
If you need adverse weather cover, tell us when arranging your insurance.
Does event cancellation insurance cover non-appearance of a performer or key person?
Non-appearance cover is not automatically included within every event cancellation policy. Some policies can provide limited cover, while others might require it to be added as a separate extension. If your event depends on a particular performer, speaker, entertainer or other key person attending, check that cover is included and that it meets your requirements. If you need non-appearance cover, tell us when arranging your insurance.
What does event cancellation insurance not cover?
Event cancellation insurance does not cover every reason an event might be cancelled, postponed or abandoned.
Policies commonly exclude or restrict certain circumstances and causes of loss. These can include:
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poor ticket sales, lack of attendance, reduced attendance or insufficient interest;
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pre-existing or circumstances already known when the insurance was arranged;
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financial failure or insolvency;
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withdrawal of financial support;
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a commercial decision to cancel where no insured cause has occurred.
Exclusions differ between insurers, so check your policy wording, schedule and endorsements to understand what is and is not covered whether the policy meets with your requirements.
How much does event cancellation insurance cost?
Quote explained
This starting price is based on:
This premium example is based on cover for irrecoverable costs and expenses if the whole event has to be cancelled, abandoned or postponed following specified insured circumstances.
The policy includes defined cover for adverse weather and specified non-appearance risks, subject to policy terms and conditions.
It does not cover every reason an event might be cancelled. Terms, conditions, limits and exclusions apply. Other event cancellation policies and wider cover may be available depending on your requirements.
This is an actual quotation arranged through David J Miller Insurance Brokers and underwritten by Bspoke Underwriting Ltd on behalf of Accelerant Insurance UK Limited dated 26 September 2026. Your premium will be calculated based on the details of your event and the cover selected, so the price you receive may be higher than the example shown.
Factors that can affect the premium include the cancellation amount insured, the duration of the event, basis of cover and any specific risks or extensions required. Adding public liability, employers’ liability or event equipment cover can also increase the premium.
How
to get
a quote
You can call us, fill in our online form, or ask us to call you back, whatever suits you best.
Read more about the different ways to get in touch, what information we will need from you and FAQs about getting an event insurance quote.
What information do we need for an event cancellation insurance quote?
To arrange an event cancellation insurance quote, we will usually need:
When should you buy event cancellation insurance?
It’s sensible to arrange event cancellation insurance early in the planning process, especially if you need cover for adverse weather, non-appearance or another specialist extension. You should consider arranging cover once you start committing costs, entering contracts or taking revenue for the event. Arranging cover early gives insurers the opportunity to consider the risk before circumstances develop that could affect the cover available. Event cancellation cover normally starts from the policy inception date, rather than only applying on the date of the event. This means an insured cause arising during the period of insurance and before the event takes place should be covered if it results in the event being cancelled, subject to the cover arranged, the policy terms, conditions and exclusions.
Why
choose
us
Specialist event insurance with direct support from a UK-based team
Read MoreEvent cancellation insurance FAQs
Answers to common questions about event cancellation cover.
How much event cancellation cover do I need?
The amount of cover you need will depend on the financial exposure you want to protect. This could be irrecoverable costs and expenses, expected gross revenue or another basis agreed with the insurer. The sums insured should reflect the amount at risk if the event is cancelled, postponed, abandoned or otherwise disrupted by an insured cause.
Does event cancellation insurance cover bad weather?
Bad weather can be insured, but it is not automatically included within every event cancellation policy. Certain factors such as when cover is requested, the event type, location, season, outdoor exposure, use of temporary structures and whether the event can proceed in continuous moderate rainfall or certain windspeeds will determine if bad weather cover is available for your event.
Can I buy event cancellation insurance on its own?
Yes. We can arrange standalone event cancellation insurance. Cancellation cover can also be arranged alongside other types of event insurance, including public liability, employers’ liability and event equipment cover.
Can event cancellation insurance cover more than one event?
Yes. Event cancellation insurance can be arranged for a series of events as well as for a single event. To arrange cover, we will need details of each event, including the dates, locations, financial exposures and any differences in risk between the events.
Can event cancellation insurance cover an event at more than one location?
Yes. Event cancellation insurance can be arranged for an event taking place across more than one location. To arrange cover, we will need details of each venue or site, including the dates, financial exposures and any differences in risk between the locations.
