Film & TV Production Insurance

About Us
Mahony Film & Entertainment Insurance is a Division of Wallace McLean Limited.
We are New Zealand’s most experienced “Film and Entertainment Insurance” broker whose directors have provided advice or arranged insurance for the smallest to the largest films made in NZ, beginning in 1977 with Sleeping Dogs, Smash Palace, Good By Pork Pie, Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence, Savage Islands through to The Lord of the Rings, Vertical Limit and recently completed, Mission Impossible 6, and The Meg.
We have also provided insurance for the popular musical “Pleasuredome” and SKYCITY’S musical comedy “City of 100 Lovers”.
Our Specialists

Brian Mahony
Managing Director
Brian pioneered Film & TV production insurance in New Zealand in 1977. He partnered early on with the world’s leading entertainment broker, Albert G. Ruben.
Contact Details
DDI: +64 (9) 358 7239
Mobile: +64 21 622 444
Email: brian@wmmi.co.nz

Johann van der Merwe
Director
Johann has over 16 years of commercial insurance experience.
Prior to working in insurance Johann worked as a Management Accountant in London.
Transferring of risk, be it through insurance or contract, intrigued him and he soon completed his Associate of Charted Insurance Institute.
Johann has extensive knowledge in the placement and servicing of Property, Marine Cargo, Public Liability, Contract Works and Alternative Risk Management programmes.
Contact Details
DDI: + 64 9 358 7231
Mobile: +64 21 034 7037
Email: johann@wmmi.co.nz
Click here to view my Disclosure Statement
Services

Film/TV production insurance
Mahony Film & Entertainment Insurance arranges film production insurance to cover the risks associated with your production.
We cover Features, Television Productions of any kind, Lifestyle Productions, Documentaries, Animation, Commercials, Music Videos, Webisodes and other online content created by you, the producer.
We can insure your production anywhere in the world and you do not have to be based in New Zealand to access our expertise.
Some of the coverage we can arrange include:
- Cast Insurance
- Essential Element
- Non-appearance.
- Negative Film / Videotape / Digital Protection.
- Faulty Stock, Camera & Processing Protection.
- Props, Sets & Wardrobe
- Miscellaneous Equipment
- Extra Expense
- Money
- Public Liability
- Third Party Property Damage Liability
- Errors & Omissions Liability
- Distributors Errors & Omissions Liability
- Rented Production Vehicles
- Aircraft including drones.
- Animal Mortality
- Adverse Weather
- Cyber
And many more ancillary coverages.

International production companies filming in New Zealand
There are local covers which are specific to New Zealand. Mahony Film and Entertainment Insurance has the most expertise in insuring international co-productions.
We work closely with the local producers and studio risk managers, providing advice on these covers, as well as review of contract insurance clauses.
Local covers can include:
- Public Liability
- Statutory Liability
- Employers Liability
- Inbound travel medical insurance
- Auto insurance, including Third Party Liability.
Our Directors have worked with Warner Bros, Netflix, Sony, MarVista, Viacom, ABC, Hallmark/Crown, Paramount, HBO & many more!

Annual DICE Producers’ Insurance Policy
DICE Insurance stands for Documentaries, Industrial, Commercial & Educational Films. However, this policy covers virtually everything except for Feature Films, TV Series and Productions with shooting periods +90 days.

Annual Equipment Operator Insurance
We can provide an annual policy for Equipment Operators / Videographers working in the film industry who require any of the following optional coverages:
- Owned Equipment
- Rented Equipment
- Public Liability
- Statutory Liability
- Employers Liability

Studios
We can provide coverage for Film Studios, Post Production Studios and many more Film & TV related businesses.

Short Shoot Insurance
This is a short-term policy designed for filmmakers who are looking for short term coverage for their shoot. We can cover the following productions:
- Television Commercials
- Infomercials
- Corporate videos
- Documentaries
- Industrial videos
- Training and Educational films
- Music Videos
- Demos
- Animation
- New Media Content
- Still Photography Shoot
- Public Service Announcements
- Sizzle Reels or Teasers
- Webisodes
Our short-term program can include the following optional coverages:
- Public Liability
- Statutory Liability
- Employers Liability
- Props, Sets & Wardrobe,
- Rented &/or Owned Equipment
- Film Producers Indemnity (Cast)
- Content Media
- Extra Expense
- Office Contents
- Money

Event Insurance
Whether you’re an individual event organizer or an event planning company we can provide coverage to protect your event.
Contingency insurance triggers can include:
Event Cancellation – responds to claims for financial loss suffered by event organizers or promoters arising from the unexpected cancellation, abandonment, postponement, interruption, curtailment or relocation of any event.
Non-Appearance – responds to claims for financial loss suffered by event organizers or promoters arising unexpected cancellation, abandonment, postponement, interruption, curtailment or relocation of any event due to the death, illness, accident or unavoidable travel delay of scheduled key persons, groups of key note speakers.
Prize Indemnity – responds to claims brought against the event organizers or promoters in respect of their contractual liability obligations to award a prize in the event of a win or specified attainment in accordance with the rules of the competition or promotion.
Event Liability – responds to claims brought against the event organizers against third party damage, as a direct result of your negligence.

Drone Operator Insurance
We can provide an annual policy for drone operators working in the film industry who require any of the following optional coverages:
- Owned Equipment
- Rented Equipment
- Public Liability
- Statutory Liability
- Employers Liability
- Drone Liability
“New Zealand’s most experienced film production insurance broker”
FAQ
Public Liability
Public Liability Insurance, often referred to as General Liability, protects you and your business against such claims by providing compensation for property damage, and personal injury or death in circumstances that are not covered by the Accident Compensation Commission (ACC).
Statutory Liability
Statutory Liability insurance is designed to help protect you and your business from fines or penalties imposed by the courts, and the costs of defending yourself for unintentional breaches of most laws in New Zealand.
Employers Liability
Employers Liability insurance covers employers against claims by their employees for damages as a result of personal injury arising out of or suffered during the course of their employment that is not covered by ACC.
Entertainment/Production Package Policy
A standard policy covers all property and business interruption expenses on all types of productions. Coverages can include:
- Cast Insurance aka Film Producers Indemnity
- Props, Sets & Wardrobe
- Miscellaneous Equipment
- Office Contents
- Content Media
- Extra Expense
- Money
Errors & Omissions Liability
An E&O policy provides Legal liability coverage, including defense costs, for claims alleging unauthorized use of titles, format, ideas, characters and plots; plagiarism and unfair competition. Also provides coverage for alleged libel, slander, defamation of character or invasion of privacy.
Cast Insurance aka Film Producers Indemnity
Cast Insurance reimburses the production company for any extra expense or cost necessary to complete the principle photography of a covered production due to the death, injury or sickness of any covered performer or director.
Essential Element coverage
An “essential element” is any person deemed indispensable to the production.
This coverage provides the producers with the right to abandon a shoot in the event the essential element becomes incapacitated due to an accident, illness or death, for a specified time, which prevents the completion of the production.
In the event of abandonment, the producers are reimbursed for all costs spent or incurred prior to the abandonment of the production.
Extra Expense coverage
Extra Expense reimburses the production company for any extra expense incurred as a result of interruption, postponement, or cancellation of a production as a result of loss or damage to property or facilities contracted by the production.
Office Contents coverage
Provides coverage for loss or damage to office furnishings and equipment located in a temporary space.
Miscellaneous Equipment coverage
Protects against loss or damage to property such as cameras, portable generators, lighting and sound equipment rented by the production company.
Props/Sets/Wardrobe coverage
Provides coverage for props, sets, scenery, costumes and wardrobe against risk of direct physical loss, damage or destruction during the specified production period.
Content Media
(a) Content Media – Physical Loss aka Negative Film & Videotape
Coverage against all risks of direct physical loss, damage or destruction of raw film or tape stock, exposed film (developed or undeveloped), recording videotape, sound tracks and tapes, up to the amount of the insured production.
(b) Content Media – Faulty Perils aka Faulty Stock, Camera & Processing
Covers loss, damage or destruction of raw film or tape stock, exposed film (developed or undeveloped), recorded videotape, soundtracks and tapes, caused by or resulting from fogging or the use faulty equipment (including cameras and video tape recorders), faulty sound equipment, faulty developing, faulty editing and faulty processing and accidental erasure of video tape recording.
Coverage does not include loss caused by errors of judgment in exposure, lighting or sound recording, from use of incorrect type of camera, lens, raw film or tape stock.
Faulty Stock, Camera and Processing coverage can be purchased only with Content Media – Physical Loss aka Negative, Film and Videotape coverage.
Money
Coverage for money and securities lost due to fire, burglary or armed robbery.
Useful Resources
The Data Book
Comprehensive Screen Production industry directory
The Screen Industry Guild
Represents the interests of film and video crew and allied crafts in the New Zealand screen production industry.
New Zealand Film Commission
Inland Revenue
Tax information for the Screen Industry
https://www.classic.ird.govt.nz/industry-guidelines/screen-production/
New Zealand On Air
Represents the interests of film and video crew and allied crafts in the New Zealand screen production industry.
Equity New Zealand
Union representing Actors in New Zealand
Women in Film and Television (WIFT)
Film Auckland
Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED)
Te Mangai Paho
Funding agency for the production of Mäori language television programmes, music CDs and videos and for Maori radio stations.
Enquire Now
If you have any questions, or would like more information on this service. Please fill in the form below.