Cycle Tour Cancelled: Event Insurance Crucial
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Cape Town Cycle Tour –
Cancellation and why you need Event Insurance
| At the starting line of the Cape Town Cycle Tour, cyclists were clutching onto their bicycles – some worth more than a vehicle – for dear life as the infamous South-easter threatened to scoop them into the stratosphere. A video doing the rounds on social media shows one cyclist bailing his bicycle and skidding across the tarmac in his cycling shoes, powered on by the wind, as a skier would on a ski slope. While the wind was wrecking havoc at the starting line, a fire was raging in Hout Bay, and protesters were planning to disrupt the race in the same area. Multiple role players were involved in the decision to ultimately stop the race, including the event organising team, City of Cape Town Disaster Management Services, traffic authorities, Metro Police, South African Police Services, Mediclinic, Fire & Safety, and Emergency Medical Services (EMS). “Using all intelligence available to us at the time and after having delayed a number of start groups, the decision was made at 06h38 to halt the event,” the organisers said. They will be offering all participants who registered and collected their race numbers at the Cape Town Cycle Tour Expo between 9 and 11 March 2017 a preferential entry for the 2018 Cape Town Cycle Tour, before entries are made available to the general public. The Cape Town Cycle Tour Trust donated the 2017 prize fund of R220 000 to the relief efforts of those affected by the fires in Imizamo Yethu in Hout Bay. Water bottles were donated to DARG (the Domestic Animal Rescue Group) who are saving and caring for animals from those affected areas. Insurance is crucial The cancellation of the 2017 Cape Town Cycle Tour, the world’s largest timed cycle race, serves as an important reminder to all local businesses about the importance of insuring events. Organisers of an event cannot be held liable for loss, damages and injuries resulting from a natural cause such as wind, in most cases, says Johannes du Plessis, legal advisor at Risk Benefit Solutions (RBS), however, organisers of an event have the duty to take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable damage, loss or injury to participants. “If it is determined that the organisers failed to take preventative measures, they may be held liable to the participants for their loss, damage or injuries,” he says. By cancelling an event due to foreseeable loss, damage or injury to participants, the organisers fulfill their responsibility to take reasonable preventative steps they cannot be held liable, he says. “They may also not be held liable for the event participants’ travel and accommodation expenses, such as plane tickets, hotel costs, or annual leave lost,” explains Du Plessis. With the cost of road bicycles varying from R1000 to hundreds of thousands, coupled with the medical bills associated with loss of limbs and head injuries, the total cost of loss could be worth millions of rand for organisers of large cycling events, he says. “Multiple liability claims by events participants against an organiser may cause critical or catastrophic financial damage to said organiser and may leave them in financial distress or even liquidation,” he warns. For organisers to protect against such liability and financial distress, they must take cognisance of possible natural causes of damages, loss or injuries to participants of the event. They must take reasonable steps to prevent these and ensure they are properly insured for their liability, in case they fail to take the steps necessary to prevent such damages, loss or injuries, he says. Not just cycling The same legal duty to prevent reasonably foreseeable damage to participants of the event occurs in many other instances: Cruise ships at risk of getting caught in a hurricane, bus tour operators learning about significant damages to the road, 4×4 trip organisers becoming aware of excessive heats and slippery terrains, or sports events hosted on open fields during a lightning storm. All need to take the same types of precautions as event organisers in order to avoid liability, says Du Plessis. Gillian Wolman, head of litigation risk at RBS, says it is the responsibility of each company involved in an event to not only take out event liability, but to also consider event cancellation cover. Event cancellation is usually broken down into three categories which are all optional. “The first is cancellation, the second, none appearance and the third, weather, however, there are strict terms and conditions, and one should always consult your broker well ahead of an event to ensure that all factors, for example, wind, are taken into consideration,” she says. When determining the amount of cover required, many factors are taken into consideration, such as the number of people expected at the event, the type of structures that will be used, and the nature of the event. Only after completing these questions is a limit calculated according to what the client can afford or what is required in terms of the contract. Research is key and a sound event liability insurance policy is crucial – many countries will not permit the hosting of an event without it. “Certain municipalities in South Africa dictate that if an event is held in the city, the event organiser must provide proof of event liability insurance, which is usually around a minimum limit of R5million,” she says. |
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| Credit To: RiskSA. (2017, March 15). Cape Town Cycle Tour – Cancellation and why you need Event Insurance. RiskSA . Retrieved from: http://www.riskafrica.com/cape-town-cycle-tour-cancellation-insurance/ | |
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Also Refer to the following Articles: Events Cancellation Insurance, Bicycle/Bike Insurance and Mountain Bicycle/Bike Insurance |
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