📣 Calling all Australian music festival organisers to join our investigation into an alternative insurance model.

Today, Creative Australia released their latest report into the state of the music industry, called SoundCheck Two. It is an excellent, albeit sobering and insightful read. Alongside the report's release, Creative Australia and Music Australia also announced their support for a new research project FEAT. is leading into alternative insurance models. 

Throughout September and October 2024 the FEAT. team will be conducting a study into festival insurance costs to better understand the drivers of increasing liability costs. These findings will inform an analysis into the feasibility of alternative risk-management models for the sector.

More on that later.

If you’re wondering why a climate solutions agency like FEAT. is spearheading an investigation into insurance, here’s a quick explainer to join some dots.

One of the key findings of SoundCheck Two was that the rising cost of insurance continues to be a pressure point for the music sector, with no relief in sight. We have been hearing this loud and clear all year in conversations with our festival partners, so for several months FEAT. has been consulting with the industry and exploring alternative ways of thinking about risk management and the role of insurance.

This is an especially pertinent question against the backdrop of a warming planet. As the climate continues on a heating trajectory, so does the frequency of extreme weather events, and this has a direct correlation with rising insurance costs for the events sector. Festivals are the most impacted part of the industry, so it made sense to start there, to see what value our alternative models of insurance could provide to our hard-hit iconic festival scene. 

If you are a festival organiser, we need your input into our investigation. This is truly critical to get the best possible view on the sector and its varied operating conditions. So please leave your contact details via this online form if you would like to contribute. All details will remain confidential and participants will not be identified in any of the research, in accordance with the privacy protocols of Creative Australia and Music Australia.

We are hoping this study will unlock a model for a more resilient and thriving festival scene. Thanks in advance for collaborating with us.

H