Hi,
I have a question...
When I was a clown before, I worked for a company. If I want to work on my own do I have to be liscensed and insured????

well i heard some say about insureince but none of the Clowns i know are Liscensed nor am I

As far as licensing is considered, I think you need to check
with your local regulations regarding entertainers. I don't
think you need to be "licensed and bonded" to do birthday
parties, but who knows. It may depend on your locale.


As for insurance, in today's litigious world, I would highly
recommend getting performer's insurance - I think there
are sources for this in the COAI magazine (New Calliope).
You might also check the internet, or speak with the agency
that carries your homeowner's insurance.

In the end, only you can make that decision as to whether you
want to carry the risks yourself or through an insurance policy.

Ashes

hi there, I am new to face painting and I really want to be in the letter of the law when it comes to dealing with the public. I live in colorado springs and I wanted to know if I needed a licence to sell face painting. i called the local licencing offine and they told me that since I am not selling anything tangable that I don't need a licence. Now if I was selling the actual paints like a kit I put together then yes I would need a licence. but for insurance I would look that up and it might be the best thing you can do to protect yourself from those nasty moms and dads that complain that their kid had to go to school with a red face for a day because it stained. call your local licence office, mine is located in the dmv office of all places!

I can not speak for all the states. I have only lived and worked in 3. I have never heard of a licences to clown or face paint. But I STRONGLY recomend liability ins.
You can go with what COAI endorses or with what WCA offers.
WCA has used the same company for YEARS. When I needed ins. for working in a mall the ins. guy from WCA was very helpful. I know COAI use to try to offer ins. just like WCA and I think now they just recomend someone. It is a real nightmare for the board unless you have someone like WAC has. The use to be Fellerman, I think that was the name. They provided the paperwork I needed. I have never been asked to cover an incident. Just prove ins.
I have a friend who had an incident. She was face painting and one of the kids spilled her paint on the carpet. She Had WAC ins. They took care of everything. The people wanted new carpet in the entire house. They had really old SHAG orange every where. They got a 3 ft. square cleaned. She came out fine.

After using all three I am sticking with WCA.

There are stories about someone being 15 min. late for a show and being sued for emotional damage to the child and is now having his wages garnished to staisfy the thousands of dollars decided on for the damages.

Myth? I don't know but with the courts the way they are...who knows. The best thing to do is pay the $135 a year or so for the ins.

I have ALWAYS been insured. Why take chances? If you cannot afford insurance then you cannot afford to do any clowning. This goes for volunteer clowning and paid clowning. Period. Companies will hire you over a clown who does not have insurance. You will be taken more seriously when you can show a venue that you are insured.

It really peeves me when I hear someone, (not just clowns) lament that they cannot afford insurance. I'm sure if you give up that ice cream cone or cup of coffee each day or give up something (smoking?) then you'll have PLENTY of money to pay for annual insurance. $200 per year roughly is small potatoes spread out over a year's span.

Anyone interested in getting insurance through my agent can contact me through private message. This is one of the top insurance agencies to cover performers including clowns, sword swallowers, fire eaters, etc/ and no, it isn't WCA. Mine costs less with much broader and better coverage.