A jump from $7,000 to $45,000 a year in insurance costs to amuse people of all ages at country shows may spell an end to a business run by generations of the Baker family.
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At the weekend's Dubbo Show, Gage Baker's Spiderman's Bungee hooks up kids to a harness and they get shot in the air shrieking with excitement while some jump high up on a trampoline.
That's Gage's bit on entertainment pulling crowds next to Crazy Cars dodge 'em that thousands had enjoyed but as the show closed on Sunday, he was packing up feeling unsure if he'll be back in town for the next show.
"That's like paying off a car loan in one year and that's insurance to pay just to get to work and you've only got one year to pay it off," Mr Baker said about his unexpected out-of-pocket expenses.
Show ride operators like Mr Baker are currently impacted by the 300 percent jump in insurance premiums after insurance firms passed on the cost to them following a surge in claims from fires, floods, and accidents at Dream World and other amusement parks.
Insurance cost is going crazy
"It's crazy...it's the highest it's ever been," Mr Baker, the seventh generation in his family to go into the traveling show business, said.
From Dubbo, he and his team are heading to the Brisbane Show, while others are off to Caboolture, the Emerald, far north Queensland, and as far as the Northern Territory as country shows begin their roadshow following the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions.
If a solution to bring down their insurance bills is not forthcoming, "it will mean the end of the line for thousands of people who work in the industry," Australian Amusement, Leisure and Recreation Association president Shane McGrath said.
Amusement centres and fun parks will be impacted
The president of the Australasian Showmen's Guild, Aaron Pink, Mr Baker's uncle, said those who will be affected include trampoline parks, go-kart tracks, ice skating rinks, bowling alleys, and family entertainment centres as they move to jump the hoops to keep their business.
"It's a huge industry employing more than 7,000 people and contributing $1.84 billion to the economy that will be killed off if these insurance rises aren't addressed," Mr Pink said.
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The "consequences are catastrophic" but for now, the showmen have no other choice but to get back on the road but at every stop, they will highlight the escalating costs for them to entertain people.
At the recent Hawkesbury Show, the showmen and their families expressed their feeling of uncertainty for the future of their industry by stopping the rides for 15 minutes.
"We all feel like they've taken us for a ride," Mr McGrath said. "Imagine the Royal Easter Show or hundreds of country shows without sideshow alley and rides."
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Elizabeth Frias
I began my news reporting days in western and inner west Sydney before joining the Daily Liberal's Dubbo NSW newsroom. Telling all sorts of stories about people, places and events is my daily preoccupation so email me at elizabeth.frias@austcommunitymedia.com.au and I'll be in touch!
I began my news reporting days in western and inner west Sydney before joining the Daily Liberal's Dubbo NSW newsroom. Telling all sorts of stories about people, places and events is my daily preoccupation so email me at elizabeth.frias@austcommunitymedia.com.au and I'll be in touch!
