Festival firms hit out over banks and insurers

EPIC, a lobby group for the live events industry, has reported concerns over the response of banks and insurance companies to the industry’s needs during Covid-19.

Shane Dunne, managing director of Indiependence and member of EPIC, said he had heard from companies represented by EPIC of insurers failing to pay cancellation cover. He had also heard insurers, mostly non-Irish, were increasing premiums and not offering reductions on public liability, despite festivals not being open.

Michael Young, founder of Vision Safety Consultants and secretary-general for EPIC, said he had heard companies were being expected to insure themselves to the same level as before.

Young added that firms had reported issues with banks around payment breaks on loans. He said one viable company was approved for two three-month breaks. It is required to repay the full amount from the break by the end of December, despite generating little income due to cancellations.

The Banking & Payments Federation said the sector is committed to supporting viable businesses in continuing to trade.

Insurance Ireland said it announced measures from members including commitments to reduce premiums, including public liability.

JUST like the rest of Europe, Spain has been enormously impacted by the global Covid-19 pandemic and, while major challenges remain, restrictions have begun to be lifted and businesses are easing towards a new normality. The Spanish healthcare system was initially overwhelmed by Covid-19 and Spain was one of the first European countries to enact a total lockdown.

It is a relief to many that the number of cases has fallen sharply and that this has enabled the government to start easing some of the measures which have been in place since March.

This plan for a ‘transition towards a new normality’ was announced at the end of April and, similar to Ireland’s strategy, it consists of four phases which are intended to relax the restrictions in a gradual, flexible and adaptive way. The initial period of lockdown restrictions concluded on June 21.

Businesses across Spain are steadily starting back up again, but that is not to say that some significant challenges do not lie ahead.

Most problematic are the remaining issues regarding transport options and border restrictions as the country’s air, land and sea borders have been closed for entry since May 15 with limited exceptions.

Spain reopened its borders to several countries in the Schengen zone a week ago and flights are gradually starting again, allowing tourists from Europe to visit Spain without quarantine.

That said, it is important to highlight that the supply chain in the country is fully operational as these measures do not apply to the transport of goods to and from outside Europe.

Despite the hurdles which need to be overcome, there are also some opportunities to be had, provided clients continue to engage with their counterparts in Spain.

Our Enterprise Ireland team in Madrid is keen to remind companies Spain is open for business and we are on hand to help conduct as many engagements as possible because, even during the worst phase of the Covid-19 crisis, progress was made in finalising deals.

One important recommendation for companies is to stay in touch or to reconnect with their agents, distributors or business partners — it really is very important to keep communicating.

The majority of businesses operating in the market in Spain are in preparation for when the immediate crisis subsides. We must all focus now on managing the changes that our new normality will require of us. Remote working, video conferencing and digital collaborative applications have been saviours for businesses across the country during the pandemic and this will most likely continue to be the case as we strengthen digital infrastructure and become even more technically equipped.

There is no doubt the spread of Covid-19 has already had a devastating impact on public health and local economies, but the transition to remote and teleworking will have a lasting positive effect on how companies do business and how employees function moving forward.

Irrespective of the scale of this unprecedented global event, Spain is the fourth-biggest economy in the eurozone, and it represents great potential for businesses to scale because of its market size, particularly in sectors such as ICT and digital technologies.

This public health emergency, which is still with us, has strengthened inter-European co-operation and cohesion among European countries, which will support Spain’s economic recovery.

So my key message is very clear: Spain is a resilient economy and definitely open for business with Irish companies — and as sale cycles in this country have historically been very long, let’s use this time to plan for a future with a lot more room for new opportunities.

Alberto Cisterna is based at the Enterprise Ireland office in Madrid, Spain