- Contributed
Ce'Cile: I had to fork out $40,000 over the regular fee to insure a Honda motor car because of this policy.
Germaine Smith, Staff Reporter
THE LIFESTYLE of a successful dancehall artiste is characterised by wealth, glamour and power - and sometimes extra costs.
Because of their careers, some local insurance companies require that deejays fork out thousands of dollars more than the average person to insure their motor vehicles.
The extra sums they pay for car insurance coverage varies from company to company, but checks by The Sunday Gleaner revealed that this is a general policy used by several insurance companies.
According to information from the College of Insurance and Professional Studies, local insurance companies charge deejays extra money because they are seen as having riskier lifestyles than the ordinary person.
Insurance consultant Claudette Douglas pointed out that the type of exposure deejays have to the public is one of the main reasons.
"They are seen as a higher risk because they are more exposed to the public," she explains. "In the view of the companies, the stage shows they go to and the areas where they park their vehicles expose the vehicles to more harm, hence the view they have."
Local deejays however, disagree strongly with the policy.
The deejays feel that because they are perceived as being, rich insurance companies are targeting them for their money, but disguising it as business.
Ce'Cile is one such person. She told The Sunday Gleaner that she has had to fork out $40,000 over the regular fee to insure a Honda motor car because of this policy. "That is unfair. I think they are just trying to make some money off us, because we are not a higher risk than anyone else," she contends. "As far as I see, we are not higher risk than anyone, because most of the time we have VIP parking at the events we go to so we are safe. The policy is ridiculous."
VALUE
Long-standing deejay Mad Cobra shares her view, since it cost him a pretty penny to insure his 2003 BMW X-5 SUV. "I had to choose well, because one company wanted to insure it for almost the same price as the value of it," he recalls. He did not disclose how much money was involved, but with the price tag for BMW X-5s going for $5 million and upwards, Cobra was staring at a huge bill. "They told me we were more prone to accidents or injuries and some of us tend to lend out our vehicles more than everyone else. I think it is stupidness," he adds.
Douglas showed The Sunday Gleaner documents from the College of Insurance and Professional Studies, which further explained the reasoning behind the policy.
Sections of the documents read: 'The occupation of the insured plays an important part in that, besides helping to check the use of the vehicle, it can also give an indication as to the lifestyle of the proposer... A professional sportsman or entertainer may suggest the likelihood of passengers of the same occupation being in the vehicle, thus, indicating the possibility of substantial passenger liability claims, or perhaps, the use of the vehicle after a performance... Some insurers will charge additional premiums or may not accept insureds with certain
occupations'.
Put in more easily-understood terms, certain insurance companies feel that deejays are more prone to having other deejays inside their vehicles and hence the risk of having a higher claim if the vehicle is involved in an accident. For this reason, some do not insure them or, when they do, they charge a higher premium.
"Companies usually try to use each and every clause to take away your money, sometimes people have entertainers in these situations and are just penalising them for being entertainers," Cobra reasons.
CHARGE
"I don't think it is fair for them to do it. They are basing it on a lifestyle they perceive us as living," argues singer/songwriter Rik Rok. "I know insurance companies are in a business and they have to operate in a way to make money, but I don't think it is fair for them to do it. Maybe one entertainer crashes like two cars in a year, so they feel that all of us are the same thing and therefore charge us more."
Rik Rok concedes, however, that despite the seemingly unfair policy insurance companies have some merit to their argument. "They have a point though. We drive faster cars and we pick up more people sometimes, but they should have a compromise. I see the arguments for both sides, but we should meet each other half-way," he adds.
Deejays, however, may take some comfort in knowing that they are not the only profession which attracts higher premiums. As insurance consultant Claudette Douglas further explained to The Sunday Gleaner, whenever entertainers approach her to find companies to insure them with, when she explains the policies they feel targeted but she has to let them know they are not alone.
PENALTY
"They feel that you are penalising them, so we have to explain that other occupations face the same situation," she explains. She showed The Sunday Gleaner a list of other professions that, depending on the insurance company, may attract a higher premium based on the perceived risk which comes with their jobs and the implications it will have on their motor vehicle's use.
This list includes drivers and chauffeurs, Informal Commercial Importers (ICI), plumbers, butchers, carpenters, jockeys, bartenders, policemen, sportsmen, firemen or persons proven to be involved in illegal activities.
"As brokers we therefore don't turn them (entertainers) away; we explain to them that they are seen by the companies as high risk so they pay more," she adds.
The best solution for deejays, it would seem therefore, is for them to properly shop around for the best for their money, sit down with their insurance broker and work out the insurance that suits them best.
