Stall Holder Liability Insurance – EXPLAINED

By Nicole Eldridge at AUZi Insurance

When becoming a Stall Holder, we are hit with a whole new lingo, from the bump in and bump out times, council, and insurance requirements it can all become a little overwhelming.  

So, we are here today, to break down the Insurance aspect and make sure you understand what you are technically being forced to buy. 

Why is Liability Insurance a requirement? 

Starting off, a Market Organiser may require you to have a minimum of $10,000,000 Public Liability or they may require you to have both Public and Products Liability at a minimum of $20,000,000 (in no particular order). Now, this isn’t the Market Organiser being difficult, generally, it is a requirement that has been placed on them by their insurer or the council. Not to mention, it is also in your best interest - stick with me, I'll explain it all below. 

Public Liability Insurance

Now, Public Liability is designed to protect you against Personal Injury and Property Damage caused to third parties arising from your Stall Holder activities. The most common claims we see generally involve a Gazebo. This may be the gazebo taking off in the wind, or simply scratching a fellow stall holders car while you're racing to set up inside the bump-in period. 

Products Liability Insurance

Products Liability is similar however, it is protecting you against Personal Injury and Property Damage caused to third parties arising from the products you have sold from the markets. This covers things, such as food poisoning or even allergies for example if you sold something that was nut-free but did come in contact with nuts and you caused someone to have an anaphylaxis episode, you will be thanking the lucky stars you had Products Liability

in place. 

Limit of Liability

The limit of liability is the maximum the insurer will pay in the event of a claim. We have found more councils are requiring a minimum of $20,000,000 however, each state and area is different, so it is best to have a chat with your organiser about it and follow their recommendations. 

Interested Party

You may also be requested to include your organiser or local council as an Interested Party on your policy. Now, this should be an easy inclusion at no cost! 

Excess is Important

Another thing to consider is the excess. The excess is a payment to the insurer if and when they accept your claim.  A few years ago, it was a BIG thing to find an insurer with Nil Excess, however, over the last couple of years, this seems to have dropped off but really, if anything it is more important than ever. Make sure you take this into consideration, when obtaining quotes, there are still a couple of us that offer a Nil Excess! 

Certificate of Currency 

To confirm you have insurance in place with a reputable provider your Market Organiser or council will require you to provide a copy of your Certificate of Currency. The Certificate of Currency otherwise known as COC will outline your insured name/business name, what coverage you have, the period of insurance, and your territorial limits (Australia-wide is the gold standard here), and if you have noted any Interested Parties. 

Keep in Mind

The last thing to consider is your Business Description, a Market Stall Holder policy is designed to cover you as a Market Stallholder. Since the dreaded COVID, we have seen many stall holders pivot in order to survive and this has pushed some stall holders into a different category. For instance, if you are now predominantly selling your products online or have your products in stores across the country, or maybe you are wholesaling your products, it might be best to have a chat with your insurer and move across to a more suitable policy. 

Obtaining a Quote and Insurance

Obtaining quotes and placing cover has never been easier. You can jump onto our site here and be done with it in under 2 minutes. 

Here at AUZi, we love Insurance (crazy, I know) but that means, we are here to help if you have any questions please just reach out and Tracy or Nicole will do our best to help you or at the very least point you in the right direction.