Licensing@aol.com
Licensees must check insurance
QWe are hiring in some attractions for kids as part of the community gala day here which will raise funds for a local hospital. The company has said it is fully insured, but what is my position? Can I just put up a notice saying that the pub does not accept any liability and that people use the items at their own risk?
AFollowing recent court cases on this subject, you have to be very careful about any possibility of a claim being made against you. But I am afraid that a simple disclaimer notice just will not do.
The notice in itself will not absolve you from liability for personal injury, as legislation has outlawed the effect of such notices. So the real necessity is to ensure that liability rests elsewhere.
You should first ask the supplier about liability insurance, which used to come bundled with the hire fee. And you should put a high priority on this: ask specifically about insurance before you sign any contract, and make sure you see details of the cover that is given. It is not good enough to accept the supplier's word any more. You must see the cover.
Also, check with the provider of your own public liability insurance to see if it is possible to extend it for this event. Buying one-off cover is expensive, but your own insurer may be able to offer an adjustment.
You are entitled to rely on people to look after themselves and they cannot claim against you if an accident was no fault of yours. But unfortunately, the solicitors and others who pursue accident claims will go for the obvious targets, and they will try to find some small way in which you were at fault. Good insurance is definitely the answer.
Pub's canal-boat outing
QIf I take a party out from my pub on a canal boat, can I take my own stock on board and give it to them as part of the price of their ticket? The boat I am hiring has a waterways licence but is not licensed premises.
A I think that what you propose is a licensable activity on the boat, and you are not covered for this.
The practice of bundling alcohol in the price of a ticket for something else has
been going on for some time (ie, wine and cheese parties) but this does not make it legal. The higher courts have held that
part of the overall ticket price covers the cost of the alcohol (you have admitted as much yourself). Therefore when you "appropriate" the drinks at the request of the customer there is a sale and it is taking place on unlicensed premises. It is not, therefore, a paid-for boat trip with "free" drinks.
The fact that it is your own stock and you hold a premises licence for your pub (and a personal licence yourself) does not mean you can sell that stock anywhere that takes your fancy. You need some form of authority to make the sale away from your own premises.
The best solution is to apply for a temporary event notice (TEN) for the boat, which, under the terms of the Licensing Act, constitutes "premises". You apply to the district council for the area in which the boatyard is located, even if you actually move to a different district in the course of the journey.
It may have special conditions for the licensing of boats, but these will not necessarily apply, as the only grounds for objection to a TEN are the crime prevention ones, and conditions may not be imposed on other matters.
