ERGO insures the Rose Monday carnival procession

ERGO once against insured Düsseldorf’s Rose Monday carnival procession against cancellation in 2017. An interview with Markus Hofmann, Chairman of the Board of Management of ERGO Versicherung AG, and Hans-Jürgen Tüllmann from the Comitee Düsseldorfer Carneval e.V.

Since when has ERGO insured the Rose Monday Carnival procession in Düsseldorf against cancellation?

The Rose Monday Carnival procession, planned for 8 February 2016, was insured by ERGO for the first time against cancellation by the Comitee Düsseldorfer Carneval e.V. (CC). Due to the official storm warning by the German Weather Service forecasting gale force winds up to wind strength 10, the Rose Monday Carnival procession was cancelled by CC on the day of the event. We also insured the postponed date of 6 March – as the Rose Sunday carnival procession. And we’ve now done so again for the Rose Monday carnival procession planned for 27 February 2017. According to Hans-Jürgen Tüllmann of the CC: “We were so pleased that we had insurance last year. The procession was cancelled in the morning and we wouldn’t have been able to save anything. The way it was handled was excellent. Once again, a massive thank you.”

What can event contingency insurance cover?

Contingency insurance protects a person or organisation against financial loss incurred from the cancellation, abortion, postponement, move or change to an insured event.

Does the current security situation affect insurance coverage?

The abstract danger from terrorist attacks and assassinations remains high; relaxation looks unlikely in future due to the overall geopolitical situation. There is always a residual risk, although large-scale events with their own security concepts fundamentally have a comparably high level of protection.

Has the Rose Monday carnival procession in Düsseldorf been cancelled in the past?

Yes, the Düsseldorf Rose Monday carnival procession was postponed in 1990 due to bad weather and then in 1991 it was cancelled due to the Second Gulf War.
Surely not many insurance companies offer contingency insurance.

There are only a handful of providers in Germany. The market is international – especially for large-scale events. ERGO Specialty is a special provider that really does the groundwork.

Last year ERGO also advertised with the procession on posters. Are similar advertising measures also planned for 2017?

Yes, in 2017 we will advertise the procession with two images: “Helau again” (we are insuring the procession once again this year) and “Donnerwetter” (a light-hearted reference to the adverse weather conditions the previous year). The large-format posters will be displayed from today until 27 February 2017 at 15 sites around Düsseldorf’s urban area.

Will you also be celebrating the Carnival, Mr Hoffmann?

Yes, but I do so as a Southerner living in the Rhineland. I am very keen on the Carnival. As someone who has moved to the Rhineland, I commute daily between Cologne and Düsseldorf and very much look forward to getting to know the Düsseldorf Carnival. Personally I will be celebrating at an ERGO fancy dress party on the Rhine Terraces and am already looking forward to the crazy antics.

Note: The interview took place as part of an interview with the Rheinische Post newspaper. Read the article here.