National Night Out is celebrated the first Tuesday of August each year (though some states celebrate in October). According to the National Association of Town Watch, NNO is “an annual community-building campaign that promotes police – community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make our neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live.”

If your community doesn’t usually come together as a community that night, there is still time to plan an event! I started an annual get-together on my street many years ago with a few neighbors (it was a great excuse for a party!) Now, a few hundred of us celebrate in our local park – we block off a street, host a cornhole competition, hire a taco truck and get local business sponsorships to offset the cost. So. Much. Fun.

Many managers call to ask if their community’s insurance policy will cover special events such as this. The answer is “most of the time”, though there can be some exceptions or exclusions. After you determine what elements will be included in your event, contact your insurance agent to be certain you don’t need additional coverage. If you do need additional coverage, special event policies are readily available, and your agent should be able to assist you.

If planning an event, here are some things your association will want to consider:

• If you hire vendors (such as a food truck) be sure that they are properly insured and have the association named as additional insured for the day of the event.
• If you have community members volunteering for the event, such as BBQ’ing or face painting, use a sign-in sheet so you can keep track of who is “working” for the association.
• Alcohol. Don’t sell it or encourage attendees to bring it. If you want it to be part of your event, contract with a catering company or other provider that has the appropriate licensing and insurance.

If you are planning to host a National Night Out event in your community, register your event at www.natw.org as well as with your city. This lets city leadership know where the events are and you may get fun visits from city officials, fire trucks, or police cars. Kids LOVE it when they get to sit on a fire truck or turn on the sirens of the police car!

Terri Guest, CIRMS, CMCA, (CA License #0F92313) is the Director of Client Experience & Education for Berg Insurance Agency in partnership with LaBarre/Oksnee and can be reached at Terri@berginsurance.com.

Have an insurance question? Ask Terri and your question may be the subject of next month’s edition of Coverage Corner! If your question is picked, you will win a gift card!