and I guess we have to trust the Test Pilots that certified the system that it is indeed safe in the event of an inadvertent inflation in flight
Trust is a given, otherwise none of us would get airborne. However I do not believe in "blind faith".
The AW position on float arming is not something most other manufacturers have followed. There will be a reason for this, namely the handling difficulties with an inadvertent inflation - whether this inflation is due to system failure or pilot finger trouble becomes irrelevant.
Does anyone know if Agusta inflated the floats at Vne? I have heard that they didn't, but this was a position that ENAC accepted. Other certifying authorities around the world probably would not, hence the RFM restrictions for other types.
The fact that this one issue causes so much debate shows that some pilots/organisations are uncertain that the AW recommended SOP is the safest option to follow.