Liability Insurance and controlled air space night flights

[Xitor]

I'm interested in liability insurance (not drone replacement) only for recreational use NOT commercial. Say a prop breaks off and in the process of uncontrolled crash from 300 feet my drone flies into a moving vehicle. I was looking at the $500K or $2.5 million liability insurance you get with the $48 or $85 memberships respectively with the AMA (Academy of Model Aeronautics). More attractive now since they are an FAA approved CBO. Here's my concern - this is always recreational in that I'm doing it for fun, hobby, etc. If it was commercial I'd get hourly coverage for the mission, I do have my part 107. But.. what if its 8 p.m., night, I just want to get some night lapse shots, practicing, hobby, whatever. But.. since I'm in controlled airspace LAANC no longer lets me select recreational, I must select Part 107 Commercial for clearance. I get that, you need be certified, know the rules, etc. But would clicking that "commercial" negate my recreational coverage from the AMA or other recreational type liability coverage? Obvious answer is "well duh, yeah, you just said commercial flight," but the AMA liability insurance states that it “does not cover business pursuits: that is any activity that generates income for a member beyond reimbursement of expenses." So at least from their most recent fine print I would be covered the way it's worded, I'm making zero $$ from that hobby / training mission. Thoughts?

 

[old man mavic]

personally i would contact the AMA and explain your situation as you did in your post above, and than you should have a definitive answer,because the flight is recreational in nature ,then you should be covered ,if you ended up in a lawsuit ,then it would have to be proved that you were flying for gain ,instead of purely recreational

 

[MS Coast]

But.. what if its 8 p.m., night, I just want to get some night lapse shots, practicing, hobby, whatever. But.. since I'm in controlled airspace LAANC no longer lets me select recreational, I must select Part 107 Commercial for clearance.

As of 2/20/23, that's no longer the case. Automated nighttime LAANC approvals are now available for recreational operations.

Airspace Authorizations for Recreational Flyers | Federal Aviation Administration

Starting on February 20 Recreational Flyers may request an airspace authorization to operate in controlled airspace at night through LAANC and before you fly, make sure you meet all of the requirements of the Exception for Limited Recreational Operations of Unmanned Aircraft.

www.faa.gov

 

[julius13]

Doesn’t AMA insurance only kick in after your homeowners insurance recognizes claim?

 

[Xitor]

As of 2/20/23, that's no longer the case. Automated nighttime LAANC approvals are now available for recreational operations.

Airspace Authorizations for Recreational Flyers | Federal Aviation Administration

Starting on February 20 Recreational Flyers may request an airspace authorization to operate in controlled airspace at night through LAANC and before you fly, make sure you meet all of the requirements of the Exception for Limited Recreational Operations of Unmanned Aircraft.

www.faa.gov

All the drone bloggers I follow on youtube and no one has mentioned that yet. Wow, great information, thanks! Did I miss any announcements on BVLOS too?

Doesn’t AMA insurance only kick in after your homeowners insurance recognizes claim?

If you have homeowners insurance it is a GAP policy but its not required. Per their online Q&A:
* If I submit a claim against my home owners and its rejected, then I submit that rejection and claim to AMA and they will cover it.
* If I don't have homeowners, then I submit claim directly to the AMA directly and they will cover it.
* If my homeowners doesn't cover total damage, then I submit difference to AMA and they will cover up to the policy level based on membership (e.g. 500K or 2.5 million).

Since they are a CBO, and do state as part of your membership you must follow rules and regulations pretty sure they would deny the claim though if you were violating those rules, e.g. flying above 400 feet and hit aircraft, doing a 4 mile distance test and the drone crashed into a moving vehicle, etc.
For me at $48 its a piece of mind, you can say that you do have liability insurance when flying if asked (for non-commercial flight).

 

[PHZ]

Correct. AMA insurance kicks in after your homeowner's is exhausted. Read your policy. If it's "commercial", you won't be covered. And even if it is not, drones may be excluded from coverage. We had an incident at our AMA registered flying field. Fortunately, the pilot was following the rules and his homeowners covered model aircraft. Still, it is a three-five year ordeal by the time the dust settles and the lawyers grab their cut.
Be sure to follow the AMA code of conduct and safety rules, or you won't be covered. Pretty much, if an insurance company can find a legal "out", they will use it. It is your job to make sure they can't.

 

[Ty Pilot]

I haven't been with the AMA in a while buy you may want to double check with them before proceeding. As said above, if you are a commercial pilot you'll have a hard time convincing any insurance that your crash was recreational.

 

[Xitor]

Correct. AMA insurance kicks in after your homeowner's is exhausted.

Per their site...
* If you homeowners policy is exhausted
* If your homeowners policy rejects the claim
* If you don't have a homeowners policy

Per all those examples in their blog, you would be covered for liability only, not drone replacement, and only recreational flights of course.

 

[julius13]

All the drone bloggers I follow on youtube and no one has mentioned that yet. Wow, great information, thanks! Did I miss any announcements on BVLOS too?

If you have homeowners insurance it is a GAP policy but its not required. Per their online Q&A:
* If I submit a claim against my home owners and its rejected, then I submit that rejection and claim to AMA and they will cover it.
* If I don't have homeowners, then I submit claim directly to the AMA directly and they will cover it.
* If my homeowners doesn't cover total damage, then I submit difference to AMA and they will cover up to the policy level based on membership (e.g. 500K or 2.5 million).

Since they are a CBO, and do state as part of your membership you must follow rules and regulations pretty sure they would deny the claim though if you were violating those rules, e.g. flying above 400 feet and hit aircraft, doing a 4 mile distance test and the drone crashed into a moving vehicle, etc.
For me at $48 its a piece of mind, you can say that you do have liability insurance when flying if asked (for non-commercial flight).

Thank you for clarifying that for us. Good information to know.

 

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