By night Keith Svendsen is an experienced bass player with semi-professional gigging bands… but by day he works in the completely different world of insurance.
They were two separate parts of his life until recently – when Keith devised a musical insurance policy that could be a perfect solution for gigging musicians.
“Most of us think insurance is boring… Until your stuff gets nicked,” he says. “Previously, like most of my gigging friends, I relied on my home contents insurance to cover my gear when I was out playing.
“Then I discovered to my horror that the small print of standard home insurance policies specifically excludes all ‘business use’. That means that if you get paid for a gig (even just a £30 session at the local pub) it can be classed as business use. Your insurer could legitimately refuse to pay up if your beloved guitars, drums or keys get stolen.”
This is why many serious pro-musicians take out another separate policy specially to cover their music gear. But that means they have to have two policies, one for the home and one when gigging. It’s fiddly, time-consuming and expensive.
So Keith sat down and devised a brand new policy called Musician’s Home Insurance. Under his existing business Prosure Insurance Services the policy officially launches this month (January 2017).
“It provides all the usual home insurance requirements, including buildings, contents and personal possessions – even details like freezer cover, money and credit cards,’ says Keith, from Melksham in Wiltshire.
“What I’ve added is special cover for your music gear at home AND when out gigging, which can also include theft from an unattended vehicle, European cover and much more.”
Keith says: “Being a musician myself I’ve managed to devise a policy that does everything a musician needs. And best of all I’ve been able to do it at a really good price because I know all musicians are always short of money!”
With this policy you don’t have to try and bluff your way through the deal. “We know from the start you are a gigging musician who gets paid for playing,” says Keith. “In fact, we take an active interest in your gear, exactly where and how you store it, plus the type of gigs you play and how frequently. You can rest easy knowing it’s all fully insured and there will be no nasty surprises should anything get stolen or damaged.”
Musicians Home Insurance also includes £1,000,000 of public liability cover (it’s often a chargeable extra on music instrument policies). Keith says: “Public Liability is cover against the damage you may cause to people and property during a business activity. If you were paid for a gig, your liability cover from a home insurance policy wouldn’t apply. So should your gear cause a fire or somebody trips over a lead, then you could be held personally liable. My new policy covers all that for you. I’ve tried to make it a one-stop cover for all musicians.”
