Insure That Ticket

Concert ticket insurance was once given a farcical treatment in Pollstar.com’s now-defunct Tours de Farce column but it looks like the joke was on us. One insurance company has been providing "event ticket insurance" for nearly a year and is apparently getting great consumer response.

The company, World Access, is also in the travel insurance biz, and VP of Marketing Communications Mark Cipolletti explained to Pollstar that when people travel for big events like concerts and something goes wrong with the trip, those people miss out on the event as well.

With that in mind, the company created its "Event Ticket Protector" plan, he said, and has insured nearly $5 million worth of tickets in the last year.

"People have really responded well to this plan," Cipolletti said. "Obviously with ticket prices going up and up, and people buying further and further in advance and planning to attend these events, lots of unforeseen things can happen between the time you buy and the time that you go to the show."

Cipolletti explained World Access offers the product direct to consumer via its clients, and that the company is actively seeking to grow that client list – by inking deals with primary and secondary ticketers.

"We have implemented into 60 primary and secondary ticketing sites," Cipolletti said.

Current clients include TicketsNow, Event Inventory, InTicketing, Coast to Coast and Track Entertainment.

And when concertgoers opt to insure their tickets, Cipolletti said they are covered for "unforeseen medical, travel, and other circumstances that would prevent you from attending the event.

"Basically, it covers 100 percent of the ticket price, including any taxes that you’ve paid or shipping charges that you’ve incurred," he said. "It totally makes you whole for what you purchased the ticket for and it’s coverage up to 10,000 dollars."

Unforeseen circumstances outlined in the company’s policy include illness or serious injury (excluding preexisting conditions); traffic accidents or mechanical breakdown; the ticket buyer’s home becoming uninhabitable due to natural disasters, vandalism or robbery; caring for an injured family member; jury duty; and military duty, among others.

"You can’t just change your mind and decide not to go to the show," Cipolletti explained. "It has to be for some unforeseen event that’s out of your control."

But there is one unforeseen event that the insurance will not cover: cancellation.

"Event Ticket Protector does not provide coverage if an event is canceled, mainly because the ticket holder is almost always made whole by a venue that will reschedule a show or refund their money," Cipolletti said.

Coverage is apparently calculated on a per-ticket basis at 5 percent of the total ticket cost and service fees, with a minimum charge per ticket of $6.25 and a maximum charge of $150.

Cipolletti explained the insurance could provide a little extra comfort for those who purchase tickets to expensive shows, and also provide ticketing companies with ancillary income.

"It’s just a great way to not only help provide a new revenue stream to the ticketing company but to really assure the purchaser," he said. "Maybe they’re reluctant about spending the money but then it helps them pull the trigger on going to the show, because they know that if something happens, they’ll be able to get their money back."