Firework precautions
08/11/2006 Celebration season advice to revellers
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Only Christmas Day tops Bonfire Night for accidents involving fireworks and as the season approaches, insurance companies will be hoping that their clients will be reading the small print on their policies. Stray fireworks result in hundreds of claims each year, usually for damage to roof tiles, broken windows and fires to fences. Fire is usually covered as a standard peril on household insurance although some incidents may fall into the accidental damage part of the policy, and this is often offered as an additional add on to the standard policy cover.
If you are planning to entertain your guests with fireworks and unfortunately need to claim as a result, you may need to prove to your insurer that you took reasonable precautions to deter accidents occuring. This is normally highlighted in the 'duty of care' part of the policy, if you are dousing your bonfire with petrol and it causes an accident, you are unlikely to be covered.
If you are wanting to organise a firework party and charge for admission you will need to apply for specialist cover and will need to be limited to displays which follow the Department of Trade and Industry's Firework Code.
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