Most responsible individuals will ensure they have proper insurance coverage for their property, valuables, and vehicles. But what about protecting yourself and your actions in your day-to-day non-professional life? It’s one area of protection that’s often overlooked because the scenarios in which you may need it seem unlikely to happen. A situation where you may be found liable, even if you are operating with good intentions, is far more likely than you think.
As an example, Ryan volunteers as a coach for his son’s hockey team and is tasked with providing orange slices for an upcoming match. Unfortunately, he doesn’t realize the cutting board he is using to cut the oranges was previously used for cutting raw chicken, causing the orange slices to be contaminated. Ryan unknowingly hands out the contaminated orange slices to the team and within 24 hours, three of the children fall ill with salmonella poisoning. Since Ryan had prepared and distributed the orange slices, he’s now liable. Several of the parents decide to sue Ryan for $1,000,000 for damages caused by the accidental poisoning. Distraught, he contacts his Broker assuming that he is covered under his standard homeowner policy’s liability coverages, only to be informed that he isn’t because volunteer liability is excluded from most homeowners policies.
Good intentions don’t protect against liability. Ryan, a volunteer coach, distributed contaminated orange slices without realizing it. His homeowner policy doesn’t cover volunteer liability, leaving him exposed.
If Ryan had coverage such as Unica’s LIVEasy for Homeowners, not only would his liability coverage be increased to $2,000,000, it would also extend his coverage to personal non-professional actions while acting as a volunteer for an organized charitable, religious or community group.
Even with the best intentions, putting yourself into situations where you’re liable for the safety of others can result in a risk to your financial well-being. When assessing your risk protection, speak to your Broker to ensure there are no gaps in coverage due to actions that might just be a simple part of your daily lifestyle!
