lml@lancaironline.net Mailing List Archive

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<--->>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> << Lancair Builders' Mail List >> <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<--->>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I would like to thank Dave Riggs for putting in the effort and research on an insurance association. My first reaction was that it sounded like a good idea but after some consideration I would decline from participating as I do not believe that, in my case at least, there would be a net savings. IMHO Dave's assumption about non recurring and recurring costs, read "dues", being nominal is a little naive. The costs in time alone to run the simplest of associations is considerable (right Marv?). The insurance companies "generous" offer of a 10-15% discount has nothing to do with the training and everything to do with the fact if you have 100 pilots as a group then the "average" pilot in that group is closer to their actuary tables' average pilot. I am not convinced that Dave Morss' point that insurance to non members would be non available is valid, but it certainly is a risk. I am also unconvinced that the assumption that more training necessarily makes a safer pilot is true. If this were true then new pilots would have the highest accident rate followed by a STEADY decline in that rate. This is not the statistical case. Many accidents are the result of pilots overestimating their ability to manage a given situation. This failure of judgment is independent of training and experience (really the same thing). Experience generally increases the skill level of a pilot and therefore reduces the probability that they will encounter a situation that their skills can't match. It could be argued that being a coward would be more important that stick time in determining how "safe" a pilot is or is not. We will never know until psychological profiling becomes part of recurring training and NO I AM NOT RECOMMENDING THAT! Dave R. made the point that because our planes are worth a lot they must be insured against loss. This is a common misconception, promoted by the insurance industry, that you must have insurance for everything. A wise man once advised me that you only need insurance for something you cannot afford to loose. By paying an insurance premium you are wagering that you will be less lucky that the average person. You don't need insurance on anything that is paid for and is non-essential in your life. Old people without dependents and debt do not need life insurance. Young people with new families and mortgages do. Ask yourself that if your airplane vaporized, would you still be able to provide for your dependents and keep a roof over your head? The answer better be yes and if it is then you can "afford" to loose it. By paying an insurance premium you are wagering that you will be less lucky that the average person. It is a suckers bet unless it is a bet you cannot afford to loose. Insurance is NOT an investment. Your net worth always decreases with insurance. In the event of a loss it just doesn't decrease as much. Brent's plan to save %70 on insurance and provide for your retirement as well (yes you have herd this from me before and I am glad to see some have taken my advice). The logic is simple. As the builder I can fix any damage from a crash that I can live through. I have health insurance and life insurance that covers my hull regardless of the severity of the crash. I have liability and hull Not In Motion insurance to protect me from the legal vultures and fully cover the airplane 99% of the time. The $10,000 a year that I don't pay to the insurance company I keep in an investment account which in the six years since I started flying my IV has ballooned to over half the replacement cost. In another 4 years I'll have an airplane AND an airplanes worth of cash in MY pocket instead of the insurance companies'. Life is full of risk. Whether or not you have insurance has no bearing on whether something bad will happen to you. To make you a safer pilot, practice your emergency procedures, get recurrency training from different instructors, never push the endurance of your airplane, be meticulous about maintaince, get your instrument rating in your airplane, avoid low and slow wherever possible and above all.....be a coward. Live long, fly safe. Compliments of the season. Brent Regan LML website: http://members.olsusa.com/mkaye/maillist.html LML Builders' Bookstore: http://www.buildersbooks.com/lancair Please remember that purchases from the Builders' Bookstore assist with the management of the LML. Please send your photos and drawings to marvkaye@olsusa.com.