We’re starting to sound like a broken record in our reporting of the hardened insurance market. But that’s because we continue to hear from owners of complex aircraft (which includes retracs, twins, turbines and even tailwheels) who get clobbered with large premium increases. Some face nonrenewals of their policies despite not having put a scratch on their airplanes in many years of ownership. Some even play a game of Russian roulette and self-insure the hull and liability simply to keep flying. That’s a bad decision, in our estimation.
SkyWatch, with an office in Palo Alto, California, says it’s the underdog in the current insurance climate because it’s taking a high-tech and a more realistic and simplified approach to qualifying pilots of all levels for a variety of policies—from renter’s insurance to liability-only coverage.