Only cancellations due to new restrictions will be covered by UK government COVID insurance

The government’s recently announced events insurance scheme has now opened up in the UK - but will only cover events that are cancelled or postponed due to government-sanctioned lockdown measures.

The £800 million scheme was first announced in August, hoping to provide entertainment, sports, and business events with funds to cover past and current cancellations as a result of the pandemic.

Today, the government revealed that coverage would only apply for "cancellation, postponement, relocation or abandonment of events due to new UK Civil Authority restrictions in response to COVID-19,” according to the UK Live Events Reinsurance Scheme plan.

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It won’t, however, compensate staff, crew, or artists who have either had the virus or had to self-isolate during that time, ultimately losing out on vital pay. Events that go ahead at a lower capacity also can’t apply to the scheme.

The reinsurance scheme will run for a year from September 22, 2021, until September 30 next year, and will cover a range of events in the case of another lockdown - although this has been dismissed by Boris Johnson.

“The autumn and winter do offer some uncertainty but the Prime Minister is dead set against another lockdown,” a government source told The Telegraph earlier this month after it was rumoured that another lockdown would come into force at the end of the year.

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Event organisers looking to apply for the scheme must also have purchased standard insurance at least eight weeks before the festival or event after the first 12 weeks of the scheme.

Major London venues were denied funding previously, while only a handful of them received money through the Culture Recovery Fund last year.

The scheme will be re-reviewed next spring. Find out more information on the UK Live Events Reinsurance Scheme here.

Gemma Ross is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow her on Twitter