What Does Insurance Look Like in Hollywood? And Anywhere Else They May Film
A solid insurance policy for a production will cover the producers, filmmakers, crew, production gear, and the locations where filming will take place.
No filming project is exactly like the other; even if you think The Bachelor and The Bachelorette are exactly the same! Think about it, on one show you have thirty some odd men staying in a house with endless alcohol supplied; there’s a higher possibility of a physical altercation happening and they would want to add more into their coverage for that. Whereas the other show has thirty some odd women in the same house with the same amount of booze, but the chances of a physical altercation may be lower. However, the chances of one of the girls drinking too much and getting alcohol poisoning or falling down those marble stairs at the famous mansion goes up, and they would want to add more coverage for that into their policy.
In essence, every production has different liabilities and needs, so each policy is going to be tailored to them.
The Short Term Production or Annual Production Policy:
The time span you plan to film alone is going to be something to consider as you search for your chosen policy. Are you filming a single project? Then you’ll probably purchase a Short Term Production policy. Filming a television show or something that will be produced multiple times throughout the year because the director demands for the seasons to be accurate to the script in order to fully exude their art? Well you’ll want to snap up an Annual Production policy.
The Insurance Broker:
Do I really need to have an insurance broker to get my video production insurance?
YES! Seriously, why would you even ask that?
Okay, sorry, didn’t mean to lose my cool, but you literally cannot get a policy like this without one.
You may be surprised to learn that you can only have one broker at a time; no two timing us, it’s rude! Because you can only have one broker at a time, it is imperative that you select one that is as good as you want your policy to be!
Oh, and this broker absolutely has to be an entertainment insurance broker; preferably one that specializes in entertainment or production polices. So although we at Howard Webb can’t help you, we still hope that this article proves to be beneficial to you and your creative endeavors.
What Do I Need To Cover With My Broker?:
Thanks for asking! Now that’s a good question!
It’s best to be sure you cover all the aspects of your project so they know exactly what they need to have bundled into your policy! Don’t worry about giving away the ending to the project, they’re more focused on the policy than the story.
Plus, you don’t want to surprise your broker with a wild motorcycle accident that you felt needed to be kept under wraps in order to protect the integrity of the story. Seriously, there’s nothing worse than lying to your agent, having an accident, and then not being covered for the damage and needing to pay for it out of pocket. You may as well kiss goodbye all the profits before you even release it to the public!
There is much more to be said on the subject from worker’s compensation, errors and omissions, additional specialty policies, deductibles, and so on, but for now we’ll leave you with this: Do your research, find a reputable broker, and be honest. The agent will take it from there, and you’ll thank us in the long run!
Article written by contract writer and digital media coordinator: Candace Cox. You can reach her at socials@howardwebbins.com or candacecox96@gmail.com.
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