Organisers of the final Keith Diesel and Dirt Derby revealed that they struggled to take out insurance and find volunteers for the major regional event held on Saturday.
Keith Diesel and Dirt Derby started in 2012 as a local event to raise money for the Keith and District Hospital, which was struggling financially. Now, thousands of spectators across Australia and overseas attend the event, with funds raised from the event predominantly being reinvested in infrastructure around the Showground precinct.
According to ABC, the event organisers struggled to take out insurance for the feature event – the header demolition derby – during which combine harvesters crash into each other until one remains.
“We're struggling to get insurance for the header demolition derby and some of the stuff we do in the main arena,” said Derby committee president Glen Simpson, as reported by ABC. “We've got figure-eight jump cars, we've got a car demolition derby on there, [and we've got lawnmower racing; it's harder to get that. And after COVID, it's got harder to get helpers from the community to help.”
In 2022, calls for a national insurance scheme for live events intensified when organisers cancelled music festivals and concerts across Australia due to a surge in COVID-19 cases.
Evelyn Richardson, chief executive of Live Performance Australia, said in a previous statement that she had a meeting with federal arts minister Paul Fletcher to urge the introduction of a national insurance scheme for live events but was told there was “no appetite” for it.
This year, Allianz Global Corporate and Specialty's (AGCS) report revealed that the entertainment industry's revenue and audience are returning post-COVID-19 pandemic. However, the movie and live events sectors have yet to fully recover from the pandemic's impacts.
