TheOddOne
8th Jan 2008, 07:22
something for all you self employed instructors out there without liability insurance to think about!
...was a quote from the '28-day' thread in the Private Flying forum.
This is an issue I've discussed with another Self-Employed instructor and mostly it seems there's no suitable product out there.
I've got 3rd party insurance cover for working airside whilst carrying out some types of airfield operations training, such as marshalling etc. The scenario here is that trainees under my charge trip over a chock and hurt themselves or I accidentally damage some asset airside. The cover is up to £10 million, which is the normal amount required for contractors working airside at smaller aerodromes. Heathrow, Gatwick and the other larger places require £50 million, which is obviously an order of magnitude larger in the premiums. If I was to go back to work there, I'd make additional provision to be covered by my customer's insurance in writing before I started. My current insurance doesn't specifically cover flying training.
Now, I also work self-employed (SE) as a flight/flying instructor for a large school who have insurance to cover students and instructors on their premises. They say (and I see how it should work) that everyone entitled to be in the aircraft is covered by the aircraft insurance, so I feel covered for a mishap directly concerning the aircraft. What if they trip over a tie-down whilst we're walking out to the a/c together? What if they walk into the path of another a/c? ?What if it's their 10th lesson and I tell them to go out to the a/c on their own and they trip over a tiedown?
I think a lot of SE instructors shy away from insurance 'cos there's not enough money for food and lodgings in the job, never mind having cash left over for insurance. One I've spoken to feels that the best insurance is to do your job carefully and with due diligence so a) you don't have an accident and b) no-one will have a case against you.
What additional cover do I require over and above what the school provides for its directly employed instructors? Why aren't I covered in the same way that they are? My Terms and Conditions are the same, just the method of payment is different.
TheOddOne
...was a quote from the '28-day' thread in the Private Flying forum.
This is an issue I've discussed with another Self-Employed instructor and mostly it seems there's no suitable product out there.
I've got 3rd party insurance cover for working airside whilst carrying out some types of airfield operations training, such as marshalling etc. The scenario here is that trainees under my charge trip over a chock and hurt themselves or I accidentally damage some asset airside. The cover is up to £10 million, which is the normal amount required for contractors working airside at smaller aerodromes. Heathrow, Gatwick and the other larger places require £50 million, which is obviously an order of magnitude larger in the premiums. If I was to go back to work there, I'd make additional provision to be covered by my customer's insurance in writing before I started. My current insurance doesn't specifically cover flying training.
Now, I also work self-employed (SE) as a flight/flying instructor for a large school who have insurance to cover students and instructors on their premises. They say (and I see how it should work) that everyone entitled to be in the aircraft is covered by the aircraft insurance, so I feel covered for a mishap directly concerning the aircraft. What if they trip over a tie-down whilst we're walking out to the a/c together? What if they walk into the path of another a/c? ?What if it's their 10th lesson and I tell them to go out to the a/c on their own and they trip over a tiedown?
I think a lot of SE instructors shy away from insurance 'cos there's not enough money for food and lodgings in the job, never mind having cash left over for insurance. One I've spoken to feels that the best insurance is to do your job carefully and with due diligence so a) you don't have an accident and b) no-one will have a case against you.
What additional cover do I require over and above what the school provides for its directly employed instructors? Why aren't I covered in the same way that they are? My Terms and Conditions are the same, just the method of payment is different.
TheOddOne