As we approach the summer with loosened COVID restrictions, one of the biggest UK traditions everyone seems ready to return to is festival season. So it’s no surprise that festival organisers were glad to start planning for 2021, getting music fans ready for events like Boomtown, Download, and more. However, these same festivals have now had to announce cancellations, and they’re not the only ones.
We are absolutely devastated to announce that unfortunately, we will no longer be holding Boomtown Chapter One: The Gathering this year and it will now take place from 10 – 14th August 2022
Find more details and ticket FAQ’s here: https://t.co/bu5Lw71mLj pic.twitter.com/9rM5BFVSfw
— Boomtown Fair (@BoomtownFair) April 20, 2021
According to The Guardian, “26% of all festivals with a capacity of more than 5,000 people have been cancelled by their organisers.” Most of these are a result of the insurance they have, or lack thereof. With 2021 being still a year of uncertainty, there are chances that more festivals will have to do last minute cancellations. If that were to happen, they would suffer huge financial losses, which is why many are cancelling now. One thing that organisers say would restore confidence in the festival season would be if the government provided an insurance policy like some other European countries. The AIF chief executive Paul Reed informs:
“Without a safety net, independent promoters cannot begin to confidently invest in their events. They currently have no protection should a Covid-related issue result in the cancellation of their festival. If government-backed insurance is off the table, festival organisers deserve to know what government proposes as an alternative to prevent the widespread collapse of the festival season.”
The UK government has been working on a roadmap, using the recent festival in Sefton Park as a gauge for other future festivals.
