Staying Insured

Unfortunately, the effects of aging sometimes extend to aircraft ownership. For some pilots—particularly those over 70—it can take more effort, and be more expensive, to stay insured.

Insurance Strategies

Even if the situation isn’t ideal, there are ways for older pilots to strengthen their hand in the insurance game.

• Claims history—A good claims history over a number of years with the same company is one way to maximize the chances of continued insurability. After the age of 70, most underwriters will refuse to write a policy for a new customer.
• Recurrent training—Even if they don’t require it, insurance companies look favorably upon pilots who take formal recurrent training—particularly if they’re flying high performance aircraft.
• Fly more—Another factor is annual hours flown. The more, the better.
• Aircraft—Gear-up landings are costly. From an insurance perspective, fixed-gear aircraft represent significantly less risk. Moving from a retractable to fixed gear aircraft (or a twin to a single) will probably mean staying insurable longer.

Insurance Issues

In this video, pilots discuss how their insurance companies approach age and ownership.