Illustrating Liability with the Selfie Stick
For a homeowner, owning a pool is tricky business. On one hand, a pool can really increase the property value should the owner sell his investment in the future. On the other hand, some people see pools as dangerous and consider them an immediate turn-off when house hunting. On both hands, who doesn’t love a pool during summer? Seriously!
And then, there’s… …[wait for it]… …insurance.
Come on, it’s an insurance blog. You knew it was coming.
“Why, oh why, must my premiums increase just because I have a pool?” I can hear some of you asking. (I have really good hearing, by the way) “Why do I have to have extra liability coverage? Why must I build a fence and install a cover when I’m already trying to keep my payments low? What could possibly happen, anyway!?”
Well… possibly nothing. Then again… possibly anything!
You see, as a homeowner, you’re not only paying for what MIGHT happen. You’re also paying for what has ALREADY happened. Suffice to say, because a handful of homeowners were negligent with their pool-keeping practices and people have gotten hurt or WORSE without the proper coverage, other pool owners must pay the price. Sort of like how just because a handful of muscle-car owners drive like maniacs, insuring a muscle-car will result in a premium spike.
No, you’ll probably never drown OR find yourself in an underground drag race straight out of “The Fast and the Furious”, but to the insurers of the world, better safe than sorry.
To illustrate, let’s look at a sillier, yet more recent example.
The “selfie stick”, though dubbed as a rather narcissistic invention, really does have a lot of good things going for it. Enabling smartphone users to extend the angle beyond the reach of their arms, it allows for wider shots than most camera phones allow and, in an age of crowd-sourced news and citizen reporters, rolls camera, camera crew and news anchor into one. Twitter may discover the next Barbara Walters or Walter Cronkite yet!
However, the device has also been responsible for safety issues, injuries, copyright infringements and even entire theme park rides getting shut down! As a result, entire parks and venues (Walt Disney World included) have banned them entirely.
Harsh? Maybe. I mean, the majority of “selfie stick” users aren’t really going to pose a threat to themselves and others, are they?
Well, no, but because of the few that will, it’s better safe than sorry. After all, they have the safety of their thousands of guests per day to think about.
At the same time, though it might be VERY unlikely that an accident will occur in or around your pool, being understanding and compliant with the rules will ensure that you won’t be seen as an undue risk. After all, insurers have the safety and coverage of thousands of other customers to think about, too.
And you never know. The more responsibly homeowners care for their structures, the less your premiums may cost in the future!
Personally, I use Photosynth for my panoramic shots.
Sources:
wikipedia.org
orlandosentinel.com
