Weather Risk on the Radar: Inside SERMA®’s Live Entertainment Webinar
By: Natalie Vo, FestForums | December 17, 2025
Source: SERMA®
Live entertainment has always been about managing chaos, and today, that chaos is increasingly shaped by forces no one can control. Volatile weather patterns that cause recent festivals like Camp Flog Gnaw and Bonnaroo to reschedule, or even cancel, are indicative that risk management must evolve quickly. That reality was front and center in SERMA®’s webinar on December 16th, “Predicting the Unpredictable | Weathering Risk in Live Entertainment,” which brought together a panel of insurance and risk management leaders from the industry.
Panelists
The webinar featured a powerhouse panel moderated by SERMA General Counsel member Brian Rosenblatt. The speakers included:
Julie Hollander, VP of Special Projects & Strategic Initiatives, AEG Presents
Emily Buckley, Insurance Risk Manager, Specialized Bicycle Components
Brian Thompson, Senior VP, Business Development Manager, Descartes Underwriting
Weather at the Forefront: Weather Volatility Is Redefining “Normal” Risk
One of the clearest themes during the webinar was that weather risk has fundamentally changed. What used to be considered “rare” is now increasingly prevalent, such as the recent rainfall in Southern California that ultimately pushed back Camp Flog Gnaw. Julie Hollander, Vice President of Special Projects & Strategic Initiatives at AEG Presents, emphasized that promoters are actively seeing shifts in weather patterns that directly affect safety protocols, and noted AEG’s heightened focus on event cancellation insurance.
Traditional Policies and Parametric Insurance
SERMA’s webinar brought attention to the importance of insurance–particularly, parametric insurance in comparison to traditional indemnity. Traditional coverage refers to event cancellation insurance, and its disputes are to meet the definition of adverse weather, and whether the situation is “dangerous” which may pose as unclear. Typically, traditional coverage works better for more blatantly severe events such as wildfires, earthquakes, and venue damage. Brian Thompson, Senior Vice President and Business Development Manager at Descartes Underwriting, explained that parametric coverage “fills the gap between traditional indemnity-based protection and the growing unpredictability of weather and logistics” and is a lot more measurable. Designed to cover weather and natural disasters, parametric insurance identifies the triggers of the event instead of covering for loss.
In essence, you are buying coverage for predefined events with predefined payouts. So you're saying, “Hey, if my event gets more than 2 inches of rain, we know we're going to have to cancel. We’re going to need $2 million in coverage for 2 inches of rain. The parametric insurance team is monitoring the threshold, and once that threshold is hit, coverage is triggered.” Compared to traditional insurance, parametric is automatic, transparent, reduces disputes, and has global scalability.
Safety Always Comes First
Ultimately, event organizers prioritize the well-being of all event participants and working with insurance, whether traditional or parametric, ensures some type of protection for all parties. The webinar reinforced that uncertainty is now a core part of live entertainment, and as weather patterns shift, risk strategies must also evolve alongside traditional insurance. Blending safety-first decision-making with flexible tools like parametric coverage allows organizers to protect revenue while responding faster and more confidently. In an industry built on live moments, resilience is quickly becoming the most valuable asset.
SERMA®’s Mission
The Sports and Entertainment Risk Management Alliance’s (SERMA®) mission is to be the world's foremost resource for information and networking in the sports and entertainment risk industries–striving to provide a respectful, transparent, and inclusive dialogue where members can share ideas, best practices, and strategies for managing risking claims.
SERMA highlights crucial issues facing the sports and entertainment industries, including claims, risk, insurance, and legal communities. Through online webinars and in-person events, SERMA serves to expand industry networks and professional development.
To learn more about SERMA® and their events, visit www.theserma.org.
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