Niche insurance explained

Niche insurance is insurance provided for small, low-demand markets. It is outside of the usual insurance types available, such as automobile, home, life, travel, and business insurance, and can be very difficult to obtain.

A few examples are:

• Insurance for drivers with convictions, often referred to as Assigned Risk Car Insurance^[1]
• Home Owners Insurance for those owners who have previously made a large claim
• Professions which are unusual (piano tuners) or high risk (such as scaffolders)
• Temporary event insurance (fêtes, live music events)
• Body-part insurance, for people whose livelihood depends on the state of a particular part of their body, such as actors' legs or noses^[2]
• Kidnapping of key corporate executives
• Hole-in-one insurance, for country clubs or other venues hosting golf tournaments with large cash prizes for a hole-in-one^[3]
• Alien abduction – the first company to offer UFO abduction insurance was through the St. Lawrence Agency in Altamonte Springs, Florida;^[4] Reports by GEICO insurance (which does not sell alien insurance policies) and by The Daily Telegraph state that one English company has sold over 30,000 policies^[5]
• Death or disability caused by supernatural phenomena, including ghosts and poltergeists^[4]

In these circumstances, a specialist insurer is required for these niche areas. The specialist may have expert knowledge of the particular risk or can provide policies which have been tailored to fit the need. Often, approaching others with similar circumstances in internet forums, associations or competitors in the same trade can help track down these niche products.

Several celebrities and porn stars have had their penises underwritten in amounts exceeding one million dollars, including Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth,^[6] and pornographic actor Keiran Lee^[7]  – both of whom had their penises underwritten by Lloyd's of London, also known for insuring other body parts including the vocal cords of Bruce Springsteen.^[8]

In 2000, three sisters from Inverness took out a £1 million insurance policy to cover the cost of bringing up the infant Jesus Christ in the event of a Second Coming and virgin birth. The company that provided this policy, Braintree, Essex-based company britishinsurance.com, withdrew the cover in June 2006, stating that Catholic groups had complained.^[9]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Lynch. Ava. 6 November 2021. Does a Felony Affect Your Car Insurance?. 6 November 2021. 6 November 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211106174452/https://www.thezebra.com/auto-insurance/tickets-violations/does-felony-affect-car-insurance/. live.
2. Web site: 20 Celebrities Who Insured Their Body Parts For Millions. businessinsider.com. 5 April 2018. 5 April 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180405210756/http://www.businessinsider.com/20-celebrities-who-insured-their-bodies-for-millions-2012-3. live.
3. Web site: The strange business of hole-in-one insurance . 29 April 2022 . 14 June 2023 . 18 August 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230818172453/https://thehustle.co/the-strange-business-of-hole-in-one-insurance/ . live .
4. Web site: Don't sweat alien threat . Haddock . Vicki . 18 October 1998 . . 15 August 2015 . 24 September 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924161920/http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Don-t-sweat-alien-threat-3063424.php . live .
5. Web site: Erb. Nathan. Unusual Insurance Policies. https://web.archive.org/web/20140122083633/https://www.geico.com/information/publications/newsletter/2012/unusual-insurance-policies/. 22 January 2014. Geico. December 1, 2014.
6. Web site: David Lee Roth Took Out Insurance Policy For His Penis, 'Little Elvis,' With Lloyd's Of London. 28 March 2013. 5 April 2018. Huff Post. 23 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170823025048/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/28/david-lee-roth-penis-insurance-video_n_2973401.html. live.
7. Web site: "Porn star insures penis for $1 million" Global Post. . 2018-04-05 . 2016-03-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160305134934/http://www.globalpost.com/dispatches/globalpost-blogs/wanderlust/porn-star-insures-penis-1-million . live .
8. Web site: 9 Odd Things Insured by Lloyds of London. 14 September 2007. howstuffworks.com. 5 April 2018.
9. Web site: Sisters lose second coming cover. BBC News. 22 June 2006. 11 August 2023. 13 March 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120313130136/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/highlands_and_islands/5105946.stm. live.