Five Bizarre Things People Insure
It’s a new month, so we’re taking a break from talking about BP and healthcare and instead offering a lighter topic. We’ve all heard of insuring homes, cars, and boats, but what really odd things do people insure? Here are five:
- Specific Body Parts: We’ve all heard of concert pianists insuring their hands, but last December, pop singer Adam Lambert supposedly took out a $1,000,000 policy on his crotch, because the pelvic thrusts he does so often during his concerts can apparently lead to lower back issues and penile arthritis. (We suspect it might have been less expensive to hire a different choreographer.)
- Abuse by Ghosts: While bed and breakfasts here in the states – in cities like Charleston and New Orleans – advertise their ghosts, the Royal Falcon Hotel insures against them. Their policy (which smacks of a publicity stunt) protects employees and guests from improper poltergeists.
- Hunting Trophies: According to AXA Art, those of you who are big game hunters can actually insure the stuffed lions, tigers, and bears (oh, my) you’ve been collecting, in case they’re damaged or destroyed. Presumably you can also itemize them on your homeowners policy, as well, in case of something mundane, like theft.
- Wedding Insurance: Okay, we understand the concept of “Bridezilla,” but rather than insuring your wedding (sorry, it doesn’t find you a new groom if he backs out; it just covers any deposits and such), maybe you should consider having a back-up plan. Or save money, and elope.
- Alien Abduction: Apparently about 20,000 of your co-earthlings have taken out insurance policies in case they’re ever abducted by aliens. This might be wise – after all, flying saucers probably don’t have liability insurance – but we suspect it would be smarter to skip the insurance and invest in lots of aluminum foil. Less expensive anyway.
This list was fun, and all of these policies really exist, as well as many others. You can pretty much assume that if someone thought of it, someone else insured it.