INSURANCE

[FISH]

OUR DUCK CLUB IS NEEDING LIABILITY INSURANCE. WHO PROVIDES A GOOD POLICY AT A REASONABLE RATE. I HAVE TALKED TO A COUPLE OF AGENTS, BUT THOUGHT I MIGHT GET SOME GOOD INFO HERE.

[Greenhead22]

You may can get the insurance through the landowners, or get in contact with the NRA and get their insurance, i think our club has both.

[SCOOTER]

farm bureau gave us a good rate, try them.

[Meeka]

we have gotten ours from Forrest Landowners Association in the past. They charged $50.00 for 300 acres or less and 17 cents/acre more than 300, plus $40 if the landowner is not a member of the Association. You can reach them at 800-325-2954.

[Welldoggie]

I'm naive on liability and need for insurance related to a hunting club...so,I need some of the attorneys on this site to 'splain this one to me.

If me and a group of buddies hunt our regular spot on public land and one of them tips his gun over and shoots one of us, then obviously the stupid one is at fault and liable for damage inflicted.

If the same group of guys hunts on our newly acquired leased spot, how is it that the same accident makes the entire "hunt club" liable vs. the one stupid individual?

[Wildfowler]

WD, I'm no lawyer, but I suspect it has to do with the fact that the group of you have entered into a contract together. But more importantly, the landowner should require liability insurance to protect himself since he is also listed on that same contract. And the landowner is typically viewed as the "deep money well" in a lawsuit even thought he had nothing to do with someone elses stupidity.

Stinks doesn't it?

I might be wrong, just my opinion.

[Meeka]

Well . . . a lot of leases require the insurance. As far as liability, I'm pretty sure they have to prove negligence (yours) in order to succesfully sue you. The fact that you will win does not always mean that the other side will realize that and not sue you. Therein lies one big advantage of the insurance, if suit is filed against you, the insurance company will have to hire a lawyer and defend the case. You don't really have to worry about it.

Your point is well taken, though. There is very little risk to the insuror; that is why the rates are pretty low. Don't worry, they still make plenty of money!

[Model12]

Northland Insurance Co.
134 Holiday Court
Suite #300
Annapolis, MD 21401
(410)266-6750

This is who we use. It's what they do....

[Hambone]

As you say, obviously, the shooter is going to be the primary defendant in the lawsuit. The way the club is brought in is that the plaintiff will allege some sort of negligence on the part of the organization in addition to the individual's fault. Very broadly stated,negligence is a concept which entails that the club failed to do something it should have done or did something it should not have. You also have to remember that anyone can sue anyone else for any reason, and even getting a frivolous lawsuit dismissed can be a very expensive proposition. As someone else stated, the price of the insurance premium can be a very small fraction of the defense costs, not to mention the amount of an adverse judgment.

[Welldoggie]

I get it...expand the blame, sweeten the pot.

[Hambone]

One other suggestion, in addition to insuring your club, is to incorporate. Even if the club itself has nothing but a lease, the members are still exposed to personal liability if the club is not incorporated.

[MemphisStockBroker]

Welldoggie, there are tons of arguments that an attorney could use. There is also something known as a nussance amount.... and it can be what a lawsuit is settled for.

example, what would it cost you to defend yourself in a lawsuit, i.e. attorney's fees & time away from work & headache ? $10,000 ? then you would be better off to settle for $8k, even if you did nothing wrong.

In a lawsuit, an attorney will include anyone even remotely related to the incident. Does not cost any more for the lawsuit. They can sue the timber company for not repairing the ruts in the land that caused an accident. Sue the organizer of the club because he did not reveal the dangers of the land. Sue the gun manufacturer for making a faulty trigger that would allow the gun to discharge when dropped. on-and-on...

and ESPECIALLY in Mississippi....

due to the laws that Atty General Mike Moore had passed to sue the tobacco comapanies, it has effected the liability judgements that the courts in Mississippi have given out. (I am sure Judge JB can give you more insight). I have seen some ridiculous judgement amounts that have come out of some of the courts. It is why Mississippi is loosing physicians - because they can not get malpractice insurance. And health insurance companies are pulling out in droves (200 have left the state, was the last figure I saw)

Long answer, but there is no way I would be in a club without the coverage.... [img]images/smiles/icon_mad.gif[/img]

[Crowell]

We formed a LLC entity to insulate and limit personal liability. We have insurance, but I'm not sure who the company is. You may discuss with a lawyer about the benefits of a limited liability corporation.

[Hambone]

An LLC will also shield you from personal liability. LLCs have some flexibility of operation that corporations lack. They are fairly recent to Mississippi, but are quite often used in this area.

[sharpshooter]

Try the Forest Landowners Association. They carry policies for landowners and hunting clubs. http://www.forestlandowners.com/ http://www.forestland.org/flash.html