23 November 2015

Whilst it may seem a bit science fiction to some, drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV’s) are becoming popular across industries as diverse as farming, real estate, law enforcement, wedding photography and now the construction industry.

From an insurance perspective they come with a unique set of risks and as such fall under the banner of aviation risks. As a result they require specific aviation insurance.

Your standard business and liability insurance policies exclude damage to and damage caused by aircraft. The definition of aircraft under these policies is broad enough to capture drones or UAV’s and as such no cover is available under these policies.

Drone insurance is fairly new to the aviation insurance sector and the breadth of cover currently available is constantly changing to try and keep up with the risks. Certainly the policies will cover damage to the drone (Hull) and injury to third parties or damage to third party property (Public Liability) caused by the drone. However if an action is taken against you for breach of privacy whilst operating the drone, this may not be covered.

In Australia operators using a drone for commercial purposes are required to be certified by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA). Being certified assists in obtaining insurance as most policies only provide cover if a CASA certified operator is in control of the drone/UAV.

If you are using this type of technology in your business give us a call so we can make sure your have the right insurance in place.

Vanessa Collins
Projects/Compliance Manager