This Q&A was originally published in the Fall 2017 issue of Documentary magazine, a publication of the International Documentary Association, a nonprofit media arts organization based in Los Angeles.

First, filmmakers should want to avoid economic disaster for themselves if a claim arises from the kind of mistake that E&O insurance covers.  Undisturbed sleep is important.  But even if not perturbed by that kind of risk, filmmakers usually have no choice:  distributors, broadcasters and exhibitors won’t accept a film or video in the absence of written proof that an E&O policy with specified limits covers them as additional insureds. The filmmaker may indemnify them contractually but they will demand the added protection that an insurance company’s assets provide.