Hey Bartender! Bartending Services

Event Insurance

Q: When would a business ever need to hire a Bartending Service?Anytime you have a reason to celebrate! Whether it’s celebrating the end of a successful run or the Christening of a brand new office building alcohol can certainly add to the party. Retirement parties, open-houses, customer/client appreciation, new product roll-outs, you name it - there are more opportunities to hold an event at your business than you might think! They can be a great way to showcase your business and solidify relationships; however there are important considerations anytime alcohol is involved with the workplace. Q: Why hire a Bartending Service and what is Liquor Liability Insurance?Thirty-eight states have passed dram shop statutes. In addition a national model dram shop act has been proposed. The explosion in liquor liability legislation has occurred in the past ten years as states have begun to take an aggressive approach to enforcing state laws on the sale and service of alcoholic beverages.Liquor Liability Coverage protects dispensers of alcoholic beverages against suits arising out of bodily injury and/or property damage caused by its customers to a third party. Establishments covered include bars, restaurants, hotels, motels, or wherever the alcoholic beverages are dispensed. These establishments are excluded from coverage under general liability insurance. Q: Once my guests leave the premises I don’t have to worry about them – right?You may think that you are only responsible for your patrons while they are at your establishment, but that is not the case. There are a number of possible scenarios and hospitality law violations that could have serious consequences for your business, long after the patron has left your premises. In addition to normal premises liability claims, your business could be held responsible for:v Drunk-driving accidents v Underage drinking v Bar fights v Assaults v Over serving of alcohol Q: My Company already has insurance so I should be covered – right?LIQUOR LIABILITY POLICY Purpose: Protects insured’s or their indemnities engaged in the business of manufacturing, distributing, selling or serving alcoholic beverages against liability imposed by law or statute for injury or damage resulting from actions because of intoxication of any other person by reason of the sale or distribution of alcoholic beverages by the insured. This policy is designed to protect the insured against liability imposed by strict Dram Shop Acts in certain states and by common law cases in others, which is excluded in the current revisions of the General Liability policy. Q: My friends and clients won’t get me in trouble by naming me or my business – right?Surveys showed that when drivers were arrested for drunk driving, more than half the time they named commercial establishments as the place where they had last obtained alcohol. Tough enforcement of regulatory laws and new liquor liability legislation was encouraged by such organizations as RID, MADD and SADD. In the most recent statistics compiled by MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), over 40% of the automobile accident fatalities in Arizona involve alcohol. Q: My secretary used to be a bartender in college so she knows the laws – right?The retail alcoholic beverage industry's primary response to the increased exposure to dram shop liability claims has been the implementation of server and manager training programs. Researchers are showing a link between comprehensive server training programs and the reduced risk of intoxication. ALL Hey Bartender! staff are certified by the Arizona Department of Liquor Licenses & Controls. Don’t risk it! Q: I use a catering company. They must have the proper coverage – right?They probably have coverage - for themselves! If they cannot provide a certificate that has YOUR name or company name on it they probably have “host” insurance as part of their general liability policy. That protects them, not you! Liquor Liability Insurance is expensive! That’s why most caterers do not buy it and many caterers contract out the bartending and liquor service. Make them provide a copy and if they can’t, just call Hey Bartender!Information on this page was gathered from publicly available websites. Consult local laws. Not intended as legal reference. Tipping ArticleTipping is not a city in China! The word TIPS is believed to be an acronym derived from the phrase To Insure Proper Service. Why is it such a point of frustration and confusion? Because there really is no standard when it comes to tipping vendors for weddings and other special events! We all know that when you go out to a restaurant the standard tip is generally between 15-25% depending on the level of service you have received, but what about tipping catering staff, DJ’s, and Bartenders? The best piece of advice is to ask ahead of time! Your wedding day is stressful enough without worrying about taking care of gratuity, not to mention it can be very uncomfortable for both you and the staff. They don’t want to ask for it, you don’t want to forget or look cheap, but you already have spent a good chunk of change and may be feeling a little light in the pocket already! Many catering companies have already included the gratuity into their contract. Maybe a DJ has as well. This should be discussed during your initial consultation when the pressure is off. A good caterer will guide you as to what is appropriate. DJ’s should do the same. Something that we see with the Bartending Service is that they are often hired by a catering company and are not included in the gratuity paid to the servers and kitchen staff! You should inquire when paying for the catering service if they contract out the bar service. You would be surprised at how may of them will hire an outside service, then dress them up like their own staff and you would never know the difference! They don’t do it to be sneaky; it is generally just a matter of outsourcing the liability because they do not carry the proper insurance. However, the catering manager is often times the only one that knows that the Bartender is not really on the catering staff. Also, they may be the only one that knows that the Bartender is NOT included in the gratuity split at the end of the event! Again, the appropriate time to ask is before the day of the event. Usually arranging individual envelopes with cash gratuity prior to the wedding day is easiest. You should then assign one of the groomsmen to be in charge of holding the envelopes and handing them out upon successful completion of the event. Don’t be afraid to pull a couple dollars out of the envelope if someone does a lousy job! Same standards apply as if you were in a restaurant; if you are usually a great tipper but the service was sub par you should adjust accordingly. If you are usually an average tipper, but the service was spectacular the only way to properly thank someone is by leaving a little extra! And please do not punish the DJ or Bartender if the food service was not as good as expected, they had about as much to do with that as the florist did! Hope this article helps.