A couple weekends ago I was attending the annual demolition
derby and tractor pull in the small town I am from. It’s always as good time-
drinks, popcorn, burgers, hotdogs & a sunburn. The best part of course is
the tractor pull… kidding! Maybe for some who enjoy eating their
burger while the tractors “putt-putt” along pulling a large tank of water until
their engines can’t take it anymore.
For everyone else, the best part of the day is the derby- old
cars smashing and colliding with one another until they literally die- or start
on fire. The cars are painted all sorts of colours and words to represent their
drivers and sponsors. Everyone watches and cheers on their favourite car. At
the end of the day all get prepared for the Feature. The finalists are auctioned
off and the final heat begins. The cars roar and spin around the dirt hole
literally carved out of the ground until a winner is announced.
Anyways, this is supposed to be an insurance blog so enough
with the graphics and details and now for the point.
As I was taking in the fun (and sitting in the back of a
half ton) as I have for so many years- my insurance thoughts started circling
in my mind. “Do they have insurance for this event?” Even my boyfriend asked
the same question (probably because he hears me say: “this is such a liability
issue”) as we walk by anything that could potentially be dangerous.
Small children are running around everywhere-literally,
there is large machinery all over the place and the beer
gardens…sounds like a recipe for disaster and could turn bad in the event
something ever happened.
I asked a friend I was standing with and they assumed the
participants sign waivers before entering the derby. Phew! But is this enough?
Does signing a wavier really protect you in the event
that something happens? Waivers are always a great thing to have signed if you
are hosting or putting on an event. However, having a waiver signed does not
necessarily mean you are protected if a lawsuit should happen. A suit could be
brought against the organizers if they are found negligent in the event
of an incident. It is always a good idea to purchase liability insurance for any
event. Liability insurance is to protect the organizers against negligence from
bodily injury and property damage to a third party.
The demolition derby is always a great time with friends and family and so many people come out to support their local small town community. I hope this never changes and there are many more years of smashing cars and the oh-so-exciting tractor pull. I also hope that this event can continue to be a safe environment with no issues. However, having the right coverage to protect those attending events and participating in the events definitely promotes that “peace of mind” feeling.
-Janelle