phil@sdcsvax.UUCP (Phil Cohen) (10/03/84)
I recently purchased some Avemco non-owner aircraft insurance. My
flying is limited to several club planes, ranging from well organized
clubs with many planes and over 100 members to small "clubs" that share
only one or two planes among 6-12 members. I try to avoid FBO's because
of their high rental rates, based on Hobbs time, and their high cross-country
minimums. In a pinch, I will rent from an FBO.
Anyway... I started to think hard about insurance after reading about a
renter who was harrased by an FBO's insurance company after bending an
airplane. He was not only responsible for the FBO's deductable of
$1000, but the insurance company went after him to recover their loss
because he was not named explicitly on the policy.
This scared me into doing some checking arround and lead me to do some
thinking. It does, in fact, make a hell of a lot of difference if you
are or are not a named pilot on the aircraft's policy. If you are,
all you will probably be liable for is the deductable. If you rent
from FBO's and are not named on the policy, be prepared to cover you
ass with some suplimental insurance of your own.
Let's say there is a club or FBO that rents planes to N people. To be
safe, they each need to carry some individual renters insurance. At
least enough to cover the deductable ( which ranges from $0 - $1000 )
and to really be safe, enough to cover the hull value of the aircraft
that you rent. You will also want to be covered for liability to other
persons/property in case you hurt someone/something other than the
plane you are renting.
The liability ( exclusive of hull insurance ) is rather inexpensive,
you can get .5 Megabucks of coverage for $75/year. The hull insurance
is much more expensive. However much it costs, it beats taking the risk
of getting stung with a $1000 deductable or WORSE.
If all N renters go out and get this coverage, the insurance companies
are making out like bandits ( Nu? ).
This sort of rip-off is avoided by some clubs via "deductable pools",
explicitly naming all members on the policy, etc. Unfortunatly,
in my research, I found this to be the rare case. In most instances,
if you hurt an airplane, you had better have your own insurance.
What are your experiences in this area? Comments? Suggestions?
Phil Cohen
p.s. It seems to me that more attention needs to be given to
this topic during the training for private pilots.
You can buy a LOT of insurance and flying time for the cost
of one uninsured screwup.