In terms of insurance, you think you’ve got it all covered – auto, home, life, health… after all, what more could you need? What more could there possibly be? Welcome to the wonderful world of insurance! You remember the horror stories of people setting fire to their own houses to collect the dough, and the quite-evil-but-not-so-genius fraudsters who stage their own elaborate murders. How about the rich and famous who insure their money-makers, from Heidi Klum’s $2.2 million legs to Troy Polamalu’s $1 million locks?
Heh, and you thought insurance was boring…
In order to see the extent to which insurance policies go, we’ve put together 7 of the most outrageous insurance policies from around the globe.
7. Body Part Insurance
You’ve definitely came across those types of headlines before. The Breaking News: [INSERT FAMOUS CELEB] has insured [INSERT BODY PART] for [INSERT OUTRAGEOUS SUM OF MONEY].
Crazy, right? And that’s exactly the kind of reaction they’re looking for. After all, it’s pretty much for publicity reasons.
Lloyd’s of London is one of the biggest companies who provides coverage for body parts. Clearly they’ve recognized this “need” since the 1940s and have ensured everything from fingers to voices. Notable mentions are Bruce Springsteen’s $6 million voice, America Ferrera’s mega-watt smile insured for $10 million and Keith Richards’ middle finger (for playing the guitar, mind you) insured for $1.6 million.
Playboy starlet Heidi Klum has insured her legs for $2.2 million, although her right leg ($1.2 million) is worth more than the left ($1 million) due to a tiny scar on the left knee. Troy Polamalu, a two-time Superbowl Champ is best known for his luscious locks which landed him an endorsement deal with Head & Shoulders. Of course, it only makes sense that they took out a $1 million policy on the hair.
But the most outrageous one has got to be Mariah Carey’s $1 BILLION legs. Nope, nope, that’s not a typo, folks. The policy was taken out after Mariah received Gillette’s “Legs of a Goddess” award, and she even had a statue of her legs made to boot (which may or may not be a bit creepy)!
6. Wedding Insurance
Weddings cost an arm and a leg these days, and even more so among the rich and famous! Whether it’s to protect your big day from a perfectly-timed tsunami or the wedding dress bursting into flames, the types of coverage available are tremendous. Very few people have heard of the term, but it definitely makes sense to have a bit of protection to fall back onto in case the unforeseen happens.
For a typical $25 000 wedding, premiums range from $320 to $420, which protects you in case of cancellation and bodily injury, and also provides coverage for items such as attire, photography and gifts. That way, you needn’t worry (much) in the case of a drunken wedding crasher.
Not too convinced it’ll last till death do you apart? Fireman Fund’s “change of heart” coverage may do just the trick! That’s right, if you’ve got cold feet and already thinking about ditching the bride (or groom) at the altar, then it’s time to cash in that policy. As you can probably imagine, many fraudsters-in-crime saw this as the perfect opportunity to make some money! That’s why a “change of heart” claim must now be filed ONE YEAR BEFORE your wedding to collect on this policy.
5. Multiple-birth Insurance
Many moms and dads-to-be are just waiting to shower their little bundle of joy with love, toys and a whole lot of affection, but they know their wallets are bound to suffer. Add the pressure of twins, triplets or even more little additions to the family, and that’s the sound of money trickling down the drain.
It takes a whopping $250 000 to raise a child to age 18 in Canada – and that’s before you send them to University! As a nation, we are also becoming parents later in life which increases our chances of having twins. In order to insure against the financial impact of having two or more additional mouths to feed, some expectant parents have taken out a multiple-birth coverage. This policy pays them a lump-sum in the event of two or more babies, which will hopefully take the pressure off.
4. Lottery Insurance
If you’re an employer who knows that some of your employees have formed a syndicate to buy lottery tickets, maybe it’s time to purchase some insurance in case they win the lottery and you lose a quarter of your entire work force!
Once again, it is Lloyd’s who offers this insurance to employers if two or more employees decide to leave the company after winning the lottery. As difficult as it is to believe, it has actually happened before in the United Kingdom. A group of 12 bus drivers had won the Euromillions jackpot of £38 million, leaving the employer with just four fifths of its original crew.
3. Supernatural Attack Insurance
Do you purposefully avoid going out on full moon nights, carry garlic to ward off bloodsuckers and spray yourself regularly with holy water? Still not assured that you’ll find peace of mind amongst vampires, werewolves, and other questionable beasts? For those who don’t trust their talismans to do the job, rest assured because there are insurance providers who will cover you in case of these misfortunes.
British Insurance and the previously-mentioned Lloyd’s of London sell insurance coverage for alien abduction. There have been over 400, 000 of these policies sold – and all you need is proof that you were abducted by little green men and managed to fight your way back to earth! Lloyd’s probably your best bet – it will also cover you in case you’re mauled by a werewolf, suffered a vampire bite or spooked by a ghost.
Let’s also talk about Jacobite Cruises, a cruise company that insured its fleet for more than $1 million against Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster. Clearly, a company which specializes in Loch Ness cruises thinks it’s better safe than sorry!
2. Taco Insurance
Talk about a tough landing! In 2001, Taco Bell launched a campaign by offering a free taco to everyone in the United States if the Mir space station (the largest man-made object at the time to be sent into orbit and brought back to Earth) hit a 40-by-40 foot target in the Pacific Ocean. If the core of the space station hit the target, that would’ve meant many happy Americans and Taco Bell would’ve been $272.7 million poorer… or would it? Nah, not only was it a smart promotional stunt, but the chain also took out prize indemnity insurance to cover the risks!
What was even better for Taco Bell was that the station didn’t end up hitting the target and the company got away with tons of free traffic.
1. Laughing-to-death Insurance
We think the funniest policy though, has got to be this. During the 1900s, movie-goers were so scared of laughing their way to an early demise that they bought insurance with the notorious insure-anything firm, Lloyd’s of London. I guess they figured that even if they guffawed to death, at least their last moments would’ve been merry!
#1 Laugh to death insurance–craziest! But what if you do get one of these insurance but you don’t die because of them…then how does that work? For example the supernatural attack one, if that never happens (most likely wont) then would it not be a waste of money (premium you pay)?
Thanks for the note – yes these are protecting against the unexpected.