MOSAIC unlikely to disrupt insurance coverage
Still worth verifying
The new regulations governing sport pilot privileges—as exercised by both sport pilots and those with higher certificates—will enable pilots to fly a much larger variety of aircraft without an FAA medical certificate or BasicMed. Pilots who have previously flown subject to more rigorous medical scrutiny are unlikely to encounter difficulty maintaining their insurance coverage if they opt to qualify medically with only a driver's license, with a couple of caveats, according to one industry expert.
Eric Barfield, president of AssuredPartners Aerospace (AOPA's partner for aviation insurance), said insurance companies are anticipating the regulation changes resulting from the FAA's Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certification (MOSAIC) rule including the expanded sport pilot privileges that take effect October 22.
Pilots who established their current policy while flying with a third class medical certificate or BasicMed can expect to exercise sport pilot privileges in aircraft such as a Cessna 182 or a Piper Archer (among many aircraft with a clean stall speed at or below 59 knots calibrated airspeed and four seats or fewer) without risking their current coverage, and the MOSAIC changes may also benefit insurers—and provide some degree of relief from the cost pressures that prompted the industry to raise premiums dramatically between 2019 and 2022. Those increases were driven by a combination of factors including significantly larger civil jury awards in fatality cases. Private pilots exercising sport pilot privileges in four-seat aircraft will be limited to a single passenger, and that will, in turn, limit the potential liability that insurance companies must account for in pricing policies. (Learn more about insurance cost drivers and strategies to control your premium costs in this 2024 article.)
Visit our MOSAIC Explained page to learn more about how sport pilot and aircraft regulation changes will affect you.
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