From:
Fred Hopengarten K1VR 781/259-0088
Six Willarch Road
Lincoln, MA 01773-5105
permanent e-mail address: fhopengarten@mba1972.hbs.edu
On Thu, 12 Mar 1998 16:02:32 -0600 "Dale L. Martin" <kg5u@hal-pc.org>
writes:
> A lot (not all) of the problems there could have
>been prevented by guying the power poles--interesting side note:
>none of the power lines or poles are insured!
K1VR: This brings up a topic which may interest towertalkians more
generally. Power companies, like phone companies, "self-insure." If you
have no special ham radio insurance and no homeowners insurance which
might cover the loss of your own tower, you too are self-insured. Does
this make sense?
If you can withstand a financial loss equal to your re-installation
costs, about once every so often (a number related to the odds of
suffering a disaster, a number like once every 10, 15 or 20 years), then
you too should self-insure. However, if you are unable to do the
re-installation yourself, a process which might cost you $2-20,000 if
done by a professional (a professional such as K7LXC or KC1XX), and you
might not be able to afford that cost, then you should be checking out
insurance coverage right now. In other words, your mileage may vary.
However, speaking generally, insurance is neither good nor bad -- the
real question is whether or not it is appropriate for YOU.
What do I do? I am lucky to be an able-bodied person with no fear of
heights. I have only homeowners insurance and no special ham radio or
tower insurance. When the boom broke on my 40-2CD last winter, I bought
the parts kit from W9RE and enticed K1LZ and KA1GJ to come over during
warm weather. We upgraded the antenna to W6NL (Dave Leeson) standards
and re-erected it. I never claimed on my homeowners insurance, as the
cash cost to me was only about $150, everything included. If you are in
a different situation, you should be talking to your insurance agent. He
or she is not an evil person.
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