Over the years, we have become accustomed to the regular appearance of news about strange or bizarre insurance policies. However, these are particular policies in most cases and have more to do with media hype than anything else. Prepare to be amazed by these weird, but real insurances.
Securing body parts
Although it seems that we already assume that insuring certain parts of the body is commonplace, the truth is that it is still surprising. Over the years, we have seen celebrities or athletes guarantee certain physical aspects of their bodies: legs, hands, mouth, teeth, butt, and even their identifying mustache, like a famous cricketer.
However, this trend goes beyond celebrities. It is increasingly common to find clauses or insurance policies for professionals about possible problems with parts of their bodies. These are issues that are directly related to their job. For example, eyes and hands in a surgeon’s case, the tongue or sense of smell in a taste tester, etc.
Wedding insurance with standing-up coverage
Wedding insurance is becoming more and more complete and complex. They include all kinds of coverages ranging from banquets, rings, travel, etc.
However, over the years, coverage has been incorporated that, in some cases, acquires the status of a separate policy. We refer to the possibility of wedding cancellation. These policies may include coverage over usual issues such as illness, meteorological catastrophe, etc., but, in some cases, they also cover the possibility that one of the contracting parties may ultimately renounce the wedding: the so-called “standing up.” The coverages may be varied, but, in general, they refer to the overall expenses of the wedding, although in some cases, they may include services such as psychological care.
Paranormal and extraterrestrial events
We have reached the category par excellence within bizarre insurance. We have combined different concepts since we could have a complete article only with this category.
Insurance for paranormal events is oriented towards coverage for physical damages or after-effects that a strange event may cause to a person. Extraterrestrial abduction insurance covers the physical and psychological damage a person may suffer if abducted by aliens.
Maybe, as a gift or a joke, a curiosity spike, or even a matter of conviction, the truth is that these insurances not only exist but are contracted regularly. They were especially common in the ’50s and ’60s of the last century. These insurances were marketed as coverages or individual policies, even in some first-level insurance companies.
In the U.S., thousands of policies with these characteristics continue to be signed yearly. You know, if you are one of those who think you are at risk of alien abduction, you should have a policy with coverage. However, there is no record of the procedure being triggered. That is, we do not know anyone who has been able to prove the abduction and access the corresponding indemnity.
Divine Pregnancy Insurance and other weird insurances
We should not confuse the rare or bizarre insurance policies that can carry through, with insurance policies that can be requested but are not at all common or directly unique.
To understand this, we must realize that the insurance market can take on virtually any demand for insurance coverage. However, sometimes this exceeds the commercial limits and jumps to a much more complex and bizarre level.
A well-known case is the one of a religious congregation in the UK that sought to take out divine pregnancy insurance. That was a supposed insurance policy covering three young women belonging to the religious congregation, offering coverage in the event of a divine conception: supposedly to bring a new messiah to earth.
In this case, it is not known where the marketing of the religious congregation ends (many, many media echoed this alleged insurance claim) and where the real weirdness of the matter begins. This insurance never materialized.
As you can see, the insurance market is much more complex, wide-ranging, and sometimes even funnier than it may seem.