Should I get insurance for my photo booth business?

The short answer is yes. The equipment is expensive to buy or repair and it also means you’re taking your business seriously. If a client asks if you hold insurance and you can answer yes right away or can advertise on your website or social media that you’re fully insured for all events, then it shows that you’re serious about your business and instils trust with your clients.

For the longer answer to the question, let’s break it down further and explain why you should take out business insurance for your photo booth business.

Why would you need insurance?

1) To cover equipment which you paid a lot of money for and might not have the money to replace instantly if damaged or broken.

2) Liability insurance would also protect your business financially if someone were to make a claim against you or your business if they tripped over your equipment and injured themselves or if your equipment damaged someone else’s property.

3) Venues may also require you to hold a certain amount of public liability (£5m is the most popular limit requested) before you’re allowed to start working in their venue or building and may ask you to show proof of insurance.

What different types of insurance are there?

The most popular insurance policies that photo booth businesses take out are public and product liability cover and equipment cover. There are other types of insurance your business should consider such as employers’ liability, business interruption and professional indemnity.

Why does my photo booth business need public and product liability insurance?

If a member of the public injures themselves whilst using your equipment or photo booth, they may try to make a claim against you. This can be very costly to defend and if successful, could cost your business millions. The most popular limit of indemnity to buy is £5,000,000. However, you can buy cover for £1m, £2m, £5m or £10m. This insurance also provides cover if you were to damage or break something at a venue (third-party property damage).

Why does my photo booth business need employers’ liability?

All employers require employers’ liability by law. This means that if you employ anyone, including labour-only subcontractors, then you are required by law to have employers’ liability. You will also need this cover if you have volunteers or friends helping you out with your business.

Claims made against you by your employees could include financial compensation for any expenses incurred, loss of earnings, possible loss of future earnings and pain and suffering caused by the injury or illness. In addition, even if your wedding and event business was not the cause of alleged injury or illness, the costs and expenses incurred in taking legal advice and defending an action in court can be substantial.

Employers' liability insurance is there to make sure the money will be available to deal with claims.

Why does my photo booth business need equipment cover?

Photo booths, magic mirrors, 360 booths and even new-to-the-scene robot photo booths cost a lot to buy. If anything were to happen to your equipment, such as accidental damage caused by a guest, theft, or water damage whilst in storage, then equipment cover would pay out in order for you to repurchase your equipment - a hefty business expense if you don’t have insurance to cover the costs. You can also cover your equipment whilst hired out, even if a representative of your business is not in attendance.

Why does my photo booth business need business interruption cover?

Business interruption cover will pay for any loss of income you may suffer due to a material damage claim i.e. if your equipment is stolen or damaged and you can’t trade as normal.

During the wedding season, you might have back-to-back bookings every weekend. What would you do if your photobooth was damaged so badly that you couldn’t hire it out for your next booking? You could lose that booking and any income due to not being able to facilitate the booking. Business interruption cover is there to cover any financial losses until your business is back up and running again.

Why does my photo booth business need professional indemnity cover?

Any business that provides a professional service or advice to clients should consider professional indemnity insurance. If you want to protect your business from allegations of mistakes or negligence in your work, then a professional indemnity policy will provide the cover you need.

Concluding thoughts

Protecting your business from claims and losses with insurance could keep you going financially when you need it most. It’s not a bad idea to shop around, but make sure you compare policy wordings and the cover you are getting, not just the price.

If you would like a quotation, call us Mon- Fri 9 am - 5 pm on 0121 550 2380 or request a call back.