Trade shows and exhibitions these days are attended by companies that are extremely competitive. Firstly, these companies will do just about anything to out do each other at a trade show or exhibition. They spend large amounts of money on exhibition stands and equipment. And if they do not make a contract with a good insurance company, they stand to lose that entire investment in case of a disaster.

Take the exhibition stands themselves as an example - companies spend considerable amounts of money on custom stands these days or on modular ones. Modular stands are extremely adaptive as to size, and can moreover be configured to different uses. A stand that is an exhibition counter for your people to hand out promotional materials from in the morning can become a small movie theatre in the evening, and so on. Or even a projection room or a small conference hall.

While the modular stand in itself is not very expensive, the equipment it uses can be, and should be covered by a good insurance company – think about how much a movie projector in itself costs, especially the digital ones that these days can be linked to a computer. It could so easily be damaged in case of a fire or even a power surge, and what exhibition does not carry with it the danger of those? Remember that your modular stand, along with all the special electronic and non-electronic equipment associated with it, is an investment that you probably intend to use for years. Modular stands are easy to transport, meaning that you can use your modular stand at future exhibitions all over the country. Losing the stand, if you do not have an insurance company covering it, means losing not just the price of the stand, but also losing the money you will then spend to perhaps rent stands for various exhibitions in future.

As a matter of fact, it is not just your electronic equipment that could be damaged by a risk of fire – if your stand incorporates a miniature projection theatre, the seating could be damaged by fire, resulting in heavy losses. So you see, you need to be covered on every front. Your insurance organisation will send an underwriter to assess just what materials and equipment you have on site at the exhibition, and will then inform you of what among those his or her insurance company is actually willing to cover.

Now this is very important – you should pay careful attention to the list the company compiles of exclusions to the policy – the things that they refuse to cover. Then consider whether the policy is still worthwhile. Shop around, check out different providers, see who is willing to cover all the things you want covered. And it's also important to check a provider's level of service – do they seem genuinely concerned about you? Ask for referrals, people who have been covered by them in the past in case of a disaster. These may seem elementary precautions, but they are nonetheless crucial.

It's important to be insured by a reliable insurance company, because accidents do happen, and there is no point in having regrets after the fact. It is better to take precautions, and to operate from a position of strength. That way, when something does go wrong, your losses are minimal.

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