Producing a film is an exciting experience involving a huge number of people with all kinds of talent to use.
It doesn’t only take a lot of people, but also a lot of professional, high-quality equipment to make a good production.
Having this equipment does not come cheap, they are very expensive and valuable. Whether you’re a company with your own equipment or a freelancer with rental equipment, having film equipment insurance is a must.
What is Film Equipment Insurance?
Film equipment insurance is a type of policy that is designed to protect your filming gear from damages or theft during production whether it’s your own equipment or from a rental company.
The way film equipment production works is that an Ontario insurance broker would put an estimate on the value of your film equipment and determine the type of coverage you should get as well as the cost of the policy.
Do You Need Film Equipment Insurance in Ontario?
Many filmmakers are not aware that film equipment insurance in Ontario is not a luxury but can be a legal requirement in most instances of shooting a film.
Even when you’re not legally required to get film equipment insurance, any film producer knows the huge amount of money film-making equipment costs and the possible risks that could happen during the shooting process.
Examples of Equipment you Can Cover
- Pre-production equipment such as production management software, location scouting gear, viewfinders, and production office equipment.
- During production equipment such as sound equipment, lighting equipment, cameras, camera accessories, microphones, tripods, gimbals, and tracks.
- Post-production equipment such as editing equipment, color grading panels, video editing equipment, sound mixers, editing software, and computers.
What Does Film Equipment Insurance in Ontario Cover?
When it comes to film equipment insurance, there are a few options available to choose from.
As a general rule, any film equipment insurance policy will protect your gear from physical damage, loss, theft, or vandalism.
It will also offer protection in case there is physical damage or loss where the producer is liable.
One of the options you can opt for in film equipment insurance is getting videography property insurance which would include all video equipment from cameras, computers, and lenses, to editing bays.
Another coverage you can include in your policy is equipment breakdown insurance, one of the most common coverages, which compensates for losses of equipment such as lighting, microphone, cameras, computers, etc.
There’s also the option to have a single insurance policy for your film cameras, camcorders, and similar equipment.
Rental insurance is another great coverage to include in your film equipment insurance policy which takes care of reimbursement of expenses for rental equipment if yours are damaged and being repaired or lost.
If your equipment is always on the move from one location to another, you can add Property in Transit Insurance which would cover equipment damage or loss due to fires, theft, or vandalism, while being transported from one location to another.
How Much Does Film Equipment Insurance Cost in Ontario?
Like any other insurance policy, the main determiner of what film equipment insurance costs is the policy’s limit and the deductible.
However, we can put a range starting from around $250 for a short-term rental equipment policy while annual film equipment insurance in Ontario can start from around $450.
Videography property insurance is known to start from around $425 annually.
Some of the factors that determine the cost of film equipment insurance in Ontario are:
- The size of production
- Production location
- Number of employees
- Value of equipment
- Year of experience
- Insurance history
Filing a Film Equipment Insurance Claim
So, your equipment has either malfunctioned and needs repairing or it’s completely destroyed, what now?
The first thing you’ll need to do is contact your insurance provider and tell him the events that led to the equipment being damaged.
Then the insurance agent will walk you through the necessary steps to get your claim through and have your equipment either repaired or replaced.
In the case of your equipment being stolen or vandalized, you’ll need to get proof for your insurance provider attached to your claim and file a police report and have pictures to send to the insurance company.