Life insurance for PPLs?

[FNG]

Can anyone recommend a life insurance supplier which takes a sensible view of the risks involved in 50 to 100 hours a year of private VFR flying? Things might be complicated by the fact that my other hobby is mountaineering, but even so the premiums I am currently being quoted appear silly.

Thanks for any suggestions.

[batemanisbad4u]

FNG: Try Nigel Howard at Sovereign (01202 880074), top man.

[FNG]

Thanks for that, I will give him a call.

[foghorn]

I concur. Nigel got me several policies without any loading when other insurers were licking their lips at the chance to take a bite out of another rich playboy pilot's wallet (they'd have swallowed nothing but moths with mine :))

[Southern Cross]

Another vote for Sovereign from me!

[Zlin526]

Another case of Insurance brokers getting rich on our misfortunes. I received a ridiculous 'questionnaire' from Legal & General recently after i enquired about a critical illness policy. Obviuosly it was dreamt up by the office tea boy, because none of the questions to me seemed relevant to insurance or risk. One of the questions was: Do you fly from a Recognised airfield? What does recognised mean? Licensed? Or has it got a runway? Is it recognised by the locals as a field where aeroplanes fly? Another corker was: Who owns the aircraft you fly? Hmmmmmm. Am I being picky, but does it matter who actually owns them?

[bamboo]

Hi

First posted this on the Wannabee forum, but told to have a look here. The difference with me is that I'm just a student pilot, I don't hold a PPL (yet!)

I've had a couple of flying lessons, and am hooked, and want to continue. Unfortunately, the one thing that really bothers me is that all life insurance and other policies I have state that they would be invalidated if I, (or my family), made a claim if an accident happened. They state that they will only pay up if something happens whilst flying as a passenger on a commmercial airliner.

I have dependents, so where does that leave me?? Because I am a student pilot, am I automatically insured with the flying school, or have I got to get separate life insurance? If so, do Sovereign, (mentioned above) do (reasonably) cheap insurance for students?

What did YOU all do when you were students?

Any info will be most welcome.

[PFO]

Zlin 526:

IFA's are here to help - we can shop around to get you the most competitive products in the market - and because we are aware of the ways different life offices look at individual "risks" we can definitely help you.

The reason they want to know about where you fly is because (I am not an expert on underwriting risk) there may be a greater risk for someone flying their mates microlight out of a farmers field than say someone flying a club aircraft out a licensed aerodrome with fire/emergency facilities to hand. Do you see what I am getting at.

As for us making money out of your misfortunes - ask the widows and orphans!

PFO

[SteveR]

There are 2 insurance threads at once here - I'll post here 'cos it seems busiest.

I've done nothing about my life insurance, and I've been flying for nigh on 18 months (140 hrs).

Am I mistaken in the belief that my policies will pay out if the worst happens? I thought that I only needed to bother the companies if my aviation was to become something more than a hobby>

Steve R

--
PPL at Rochester (and Lydd). Read my logbook, and back-up your own at: http://www.e-logbooks.co.uk

[PFO]

Steve,

It depends on the policy itself.

When it was issued you would have received a policy document together with the terms and conditions and in there it would cover whether you need to notify them post-acceptance.

I would sort it sooner rather than later!

PFO

[Trinity 09L]

I have just spoken to my life insurer, Equitable Life, I have a whole life term assurance policy, they state that I am covered, as private flying was an activity I undertook after the opening of the policy, a natural progression, and I did not undertake this activity at the time of issue.

[g-oose]

I have long had an endowment policy (Clerical Medical) against the mortgage. When I informed them that I had taken up private flying (quite some time after gaining the license), they wrote back saying not an issue, but they did make the point that I was correct to let them know.

I also had an income protection policy (Lloyds IIRC) which would not accept private flying at all. I had to change it to another provider as a result, and again IIRC the number of such providers were few and far between (went thru an IFA and ended up with one of the Swiss firms - Zurich I think).

Not part of the original question I know, but the other thing to remember to check is whether any travel insurance you take out covers private flying activities (assuming of course you fancy a bit of flying on your hols). The usual 'high street' ones I enquired about a few years ago did not. Now I go to Sovereign, although Traffords also offer such cover.

[matspart3]

Just got a £100K mortgage protection policy with Scottish Widows through Direct Life and Pensions. Had to answer a silly 'Aviation' questionnaire (I average 40hrs a year but said that I plan to do CPL/IR within 2 years)No premium loading, joint cover with the wife for £8 per month, which I thought was bloody good!
Quotes online at www.dlps.co.uk (http://www.dlps.co.uk)

[Speedbird252]

How confusing?

Im 32, Class 2 License, I fly single engined aircraft, and If I screw up my other half gets 55 grand. Allied dunbar charge me 28 quid a month, no ther questions asked.

Mail me if ya want a phone number.

[BayAreaLondoner]

I'm in the US and I got my life insurance through AOPA (the underwriter is Minnesota Life as I recall). Anyway, most other life policies explicitly exclude private flying I am told.

[Cusco]

Its quite true that if you've had life insurance for donkey's years and *then* take up aviation the major insurers maintain cover with no loading.

When I took up aviation as a PPL eight years ago my two kids were at a pretty expensive stage in their lives so I needed extra cover.

At that time *aviation as a non fare paying passenger* was excluded from most life policies so took out a life policy via the UK APOA Wings scheme.(quite cheap: under 40GBP per month for GBP100k)

All was well until last week when out of the blue I got a letter from Norwich Union who had apparently in 1999 taken over the London & Edinburgh Insurance Co which was underwriting the AOPA scheme to tell me that the scheme was being discontinued and that my cover will cease at 00.01 hours on June 30th!

So don't rely on AOPA UK for your cover: they knew nothing about it when I rang them.

Looks like I'll be ringing the guy at soveriegn on Tuesday as well.

Happy (and safe) flying

------------------
Cusco

[PFO]

Speedbird 252,

Did you fly before taking out the insurance?

If so, did you tell Allied Dunbar when you applied (ie. put it on the application form or tell the adviser who arranged it for you)? Did you buy through an IFA or one of their salesmen?

It is important that you clarify this as I know that AD definitely have a Aviation Questionnaire for clients to complete when applying!

PFO

[Speedbird252]

Hi PFO, Your absolutely right, I did have to fill out a questionaire (my f/a came round to sort out the life assurance and i was already flying singles). Although I had to fill the form out, it made no difference to the the premium as it was for their records. The funny bit is Id packed up fags 21 months earlier, but im still classed as a "smoker" as its not been 2 years!! This 28 quid covers me and my girlfriend (she doesnt fly) against accidental death.

Again shout if you want phone number / name.

Regards.

Win some lsoe some!!

[PFO]

Speedbird,

If you had not smoked any tobacco in the previous 12 months at the time of application you should be eligible for the non-smoker rates.

I know, I used to be a member of the Allied Dunbar salesforce. Was it an IFA who arranged the insurance or one of their salesforce????

I am now an IFA.

PFO

[Speedbird252]

Sorry PFO, Im not ignoring you, just run in, and running out to Gatwick - I will respond after some homework in the next couple of days.

Corfu here I come. (Again)

Can ya all try and wave this time?

[PFO]

No problem,

Drop me an email and we can take this discussion off the bb.

PFO

[This message has been edited by PFO (edited 01 June 2001).]