Force majeure is the clause nobody read until 2020. It says what happens when the show cannot go ahead and neither side is at fault.
What usually counts
- Government bans on gatherings
- Storms, floods and closed airspace
- Strikes that stop travel
- Death or serious illness in the artist, sometimes listed separately
Most European contracts now name epidemics and public health orders. Where a contract does not name them, a cancellation for those reasons may fall outside the clause, because a court reads the list that is written.
What usually does not
Poor ticket sales. A promoter who wants to pull a show that is not selling cannot use this clause, and owes a Kill fee instead. Nor does a missed flight the artist could have avoided, or a venue licence the promoter forgot to renew.
The money
The standard outcome is that both sides walk away: no fee, no kill fee, and the deposit returned. Some contracts split the costs already spent, and some hold the deposit against a rescheduled date. Agree which applies before signing.