People living in the Wirral hoping to celebrate the Queen's Platinum Jubilee were shocked by a 'hidden fee'.
Wirral council waived the usual fee for road closures in preparation for street parties celebrating the Queen's Platinum Jubilee over the Jubilee weekend coming in June. However, some have been taken aback by a public liability insurance fee for hosting the party. One even reported that they would have to pay as much as £1,500 but others said the charge was much lower.
In a post on a Facebook community page dedicated to the Wirral, one person reported that they will have to pay the reported fee or would be unable to throw their desired street party, as the road closure they requested from Wirral council would not be accepted.
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One person commented: "That’s awful. There won’t be any jubilee parties anywhere then, I expect"
" That is so sad! Why wasn’t that advised at the time the applications were made!" another said.
Yet, others were quick to point out their mistake and explain the fee, suggesting it isn't as steep as first thought.
One person replied: "Public liability is fairly standard practice these days. Unfortunately there's a claim in everything!"
Another said: "If you organise a public event you should take the responsibility on board of making sure everything is covered in event of an emergency or incident occurring that could involve an injury, of any sort.
"Third Party Liability Cover is not unacceptable to have in place."
Others queried the steep fee. One said: "Public liability costs pennies to arrange. Honestly it’s easy to get hold of."
Whereas another said: "Public liability insurance isn't a fee to the council, it's to cover the event organiser in the event of someone being hurt. Fairly standard. "
They added "£1,500 premium sounds steep like."
The original webpage announcing the waiving of the fee for any road closures does include a disclaimer that "for street parties and demonstrations you must provide a copy of your public liability insurance", alongside the details and location of the proposed closure.
A spokesperson from the Wirral council said: "Wirral Council is supporting organisers of events to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee by waiving the usual fee for road closures, providing signage and traffic cones, binbags, litter pickers and additional waste collections. We are also giving advice and guidance on how to stage their event in a safe way.
"We ask organisers to arrange public liability insurance to protect themselves in the event that anyone is harmed, or any damage is caused, during their event. Potential applicants were informed of this requirement prior to submitting their request.”
Though the deadline for road closure applications closed over a month ago, public liability insurance can be found for a figure much smaller than £1,500. Some insurance sites have it at roughly £60 for coverage up to £5m, though some are even cheaper.
The Platinum Jubilee bank holiday weekend will last from Thursday 2 June to Sunday 5 June.
