Happy Fourth of July! Sport your red, white, and blue! Grab a burger, splash in the pool, spend time with friends and family, celebrate our nation’s birthday, and twirl around those sparklers! Oh, and you’re probably going to see a fireworks show or even set a few off yourself too!
All that sounds like the summer American dream, huh? Well, as you know, we really love to talk about insurance over here at Howard Webb; so we have a few things we’d like to chat with you about before you go mixing beers and booms!
You gotta be thinking about safety when playing with fire, but you also need to think about what could happen if things do go awry. And no, we’re not just talking about having a first aid kit, or being close to medical professionals. We’re talking about all the insurance you’re going to be ever so thankful for in the event someone is injured or property is damaged!
Fireworks Liability Insurance
If you’re planning to set off your own fireworks instead of going to one of the professional shows, we heavily advise that you obtain liability insurance for the fireworks.
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, 10,000 people were injured and required medical attention due to fireworks in 2019.
The National Fire Protection Association stated, “Fireworks started an estimated 19,500 fires in 2018, including 1,900 structure fires, 500 vehicle fires, and 17,100 outside and other fires. These fires caused five deaths, 46 civilian injuries, and $105 million in direct property damage.” This is not something you want to mess around with, and you need to be covered.
Liability insurance will protect you if someone is injured from your fireworks display; such as burning their hand from something as simple as a sparkler, or even losing that hand from a firework going off too soon. Should that individual try to sue you, your insurance would be able to keep you and your assets safe. This would also keep you protected should someone die from a fireworks related incident.
Additionally, this policy would extend if property (homes, vehicles, ect.) catches fire and is damaged. Your homeowner’s policy may or may not already have this covered, but we suggest double checking before lighting the fuse!
Fireworks Safety
So what can you do to avoid needing to even use this coverage? Well, you could just attend a fireworks event instead of lighting them off in your own backyard, but we understand the fun of pyrotechnics and won’t judge you for doing things yourself. You just need to take a few precautions!
Buy the right kind of fireworks – You’re only trying to entertain a few people, not a full stadium. Leave the professional fireworks (generally sold in a brown bag) to the big guys, and buy the variety pack meant for consumers.
No kids allowed! – Of course they should be able to watch the show, but let’s leave lighting the fuse to the adults, and if you can, create a barrier around the launching area. There’s no reason for the little ones to be playing with fire…yet!
Check the weather – If you’re in an extremely dry state, or having a dry spell in your city, you should avoid setting off your own show. Foliage will be much more susceptible to the sparks and could be up in flames before you know it! On the flip side, if the sky calls for rain or it’s a windy evening, it’s best to skip the fireworks and wait for another day.
Location, location – You’ll want to be in a wide open space where the sky is clear above. You should be sending a flame throwing a hundred feet up through a tree, duh. Additionally, your state may have specific regulations for where, and even if, you can set light up the sky.
Properly extinguish – Please don’t just kick a little dirt over the launch area when you’re done, make sure those firework packs are completely extinguished before moving on to the next activity of the evening.
Good luck out there, make sure you’re insured, be safe, don’t post the video of the fireworks to socials (truly, no one gives a hoot, sorry!), and have loads of fun! As always, we’re here to keep you covered! Now, can we be invited to your party?
Article written by contract writer and digital media coordinator: Candace Cox. You can reach her at socials@howardwebbins.com or candacecox96@gmail.com.
Candace Cox
Contract Writer &
Digital Media Coordinator
