Public Liability
The overall Public Liability exposure is high for this occupation. The public liability exposure obviously increases with the size of the premises and the number of members/visitors, and whether the club allows only members and guests or the general public to use the facility. Major areas of liability are:
Most of the injuries reported are slips and falls or from defective or broken chairs, stools and other types of furniture. The serving of hot food and beverages increases the chance of burns or scalds, slips and trips. As many clubs have large panes of glass, underwriters may wish to investigate whether the glass is properly marked or etched so as to prevent customers walking into it. Environmental liability concerns include: underground tanks, waste disposal and pesticides and fertilisers where the club is associated with a sporting facility. Refer to write-up for further details.
The following content deals briefly with some major areas of potential exposure i.e.:
General public liability risks at the premises will include:
Business Interruption
Large clubs will have more specialised facilities and equipment and will have higher business interruption exposures. With large clubs, gambling income from poker machines represents a large proportion of their income - loss of machines or the facilities to house them will result in a considerable reduction in business income. Although stock and equipment are for the most part easily replaced with other parts of the operation, particularly with smaller clubs, Business Interruption exposure is generally significant due to a combination of:
A modest fire can cause an extended shutdown (or even a permanent closing). Even a brief interruption could mean substantial losses. Separate buildings or fire walls may enable the fire department to prevent a total loss and permit partial operation, but smoke or water damage can take a considerable time to repair.
People choose to join clubs for various reasons. The market focus for the club is the key to understanding the likely range of insurance risks, as it will determine the type of custom, the types of facilities, type of equipment and services offered by the club and so on.
Many small and medium establishments depend mainly on regular customers from their local community. Thus relocation could result in a substantial drop in business and is rarely an option. The insured will probably rebuild rather than relocate. Temporary facilities are, in any case, rarely available, particularly for sports clubs with specialised facilities. Food standards and hygiene requirements will also require significant modifications and refurbishments to any property which may be available. Council and local authority regulations and obtaining permits may delay rebuilding or refurbishment work.
Should a total loss occur, reconstruction may take an extended period of time depending on the size of the club. The time taken to restore the affected property to its former condition is the principal underwriting consideration. The length of time required to completely rebuild will need to be established. Loss of the entire building will completely stop operations until the building has been repaired.
Business may be slow after renovations have been completed if patrons have found other facilities that they prefer and re-establishing the customer base may take some time. Extra time may be required to build the business to pre-loss levels.
For sporting clubs, the possibility of significant grounds/field/course damage is a significant concern due to the length of time needed for trees/plants to re-grow. If there are water restrictions in place the facility will have to adhere to bans related to watering the playing surfaces and this will further affect the speed of recovery in the event of loss/damage.
The ownership of multiple premises/facilities will not generally assist in loss mitigation; the clubs are likely to be situated some distance apart and customers will chose an alternative dining, drinking or gambling facility in the neighborhood rather than travelling to an alternative facility owned by the club.
Hospitality Insurance Broker Brisbane:
Hunter Broking Group can assist with Hospitality Insurance. Through industry specific insurers, your designated advisor has access to a comprehensive range of insurance products that can be tailored to suit most hospitality operations including restaurants, cafes and clubs. We can arrange insurance for various segments in the hospitality industry, including:
Hunter Broking Group pride themselves on having a local presence with a national strength, our technical product experience allows us to manage and service hospitality insurance products such as:
Hospitality Equipment Insurance is a core focus for our advisors, whether we are looking after small kitchen equipment such as deep fryers or large scale kitchen equipment such as ovens or grills, Hunter Broking Group have the experience to provide the appropriate advice for your size and risk exposures.
Our experienced brokers can help you get the most appropriate insurance cover by assessing your specific needs and recommending the best value insurance solution for your business, whilst still maintaining the highest standard of cover.
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