www.PSFmagazine.com | May-June 2019 | 41 40 | May-June 2019 | Powered Sport Flying Meet the New Insurance: Same as the Old Insurance Recently we told you that the underwriting company had chosen to discontinue the First Flight/usua insurance program. This news came suddenly and it put both usua and our members who rely on the insurance in a bad position. Needless to say, the usua Board of Directors prioritized replacing the insurance program with something that would work for members. Fortunately, after contacting several companies (and having some companies contact us!) we have settled on a new program for usua members. The best part about this program is that it is nearly an identical program (with identical pricing) to the one that has served members for a couple of decades. The new insurance provider is called O2 Sports Insurance. Kandace Kalin from O2 worked closely with usua and her underwriter to make sure that the new insurance program would look like what members are used to. You can visit their web site at www.o2sportsinsurance.com and you can reach Kandace directly at kk@o2sportsinsurance.com to get specifics. Her toll free number is (855) 351-0202. The temporary loss of the insurance program really illustrated the need in the ultralight/light sport community for usua and this important member benefit. Several members contacted us to let us know exactly how important the insurance program was for them to be able to continue to hangar their aircraft at public airports. The insurance is reasonably priced, covers situations that other insurance programs don’t cover, and the no-frills program provides exactly the coverage pilots need to remain based at airports around the country. The insurance continues as a $1M third-party liability insurance. Third-party insurance is what some airports and event organizers require from pilots wanting to hangar at their airports or fly at their events. It simply covers pilots who may accidently harm someone else or their property with their aircraft. It doesn’t cover the aircraft itself or those flying in it, but it does cover nearly everything else. We have found over the past couple of months that this insurance is difficult to acquire for ultralights and some light experimental aircraft. One of the things that made the insurance easier to replace was the historically safe operations demonstrated by usua pilots. A good claim history made usua pilots a good bet. It also helps that usua is an active participant in the program, offering knowledge and background on insurance issues to the insurer. Here are a few questions and answers for you. Q. How does this affect the policy I have with First Flight Insurance Group? A. It doesn’t, really. If you are currently participating in the usua policy with First Flight Insurance Group, that insurance continues through the policy exportation date. When you get close to that expiration date, you should contact O2 Sports Insurance to renew with the new program. Q. What are the rates with this new insurance program? A. The rates are the same as they were with First Flight Insurance Group, along with coverages. Q. Do I need to be a usua member? A. Yes. Just like the old program, the policy is written to usua and members who participate do so as ‘added insured.’ Finally, the usua board would like to thank members for their patience, support and help in finding a new provider for this very valuable member benefit. Of course we made a lot of phone calls to insurance companies, but so did usua members! And usua members forwarded us leads to possible insurers. The process went a lot faster due to the active help from members. usua members are the best!
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