Why Cinderella Doesn’t Need Insurance?

 

Most people are preoccupied with getting ready for Christmas and don’t want to think about whether they need insurance.

I’m finished with these preparations.

So, I’m sitting here making an inventory of our insurance arrangements. Yep, I was right: our car and house insurance need to be renewed in January.

And I really hope that you are already convinced that when it comes to insurance loyalty is very over-rated. You know we found this one the hard way several years back.

Since then we shop for house insurance and car insurance every year. Have to remind John to start looking!

This set me thinking though. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could avoid the whole need insurance thing altogether?

Not in the silly ‘oh, it probably won’t happen to me, I’m very lucky’ kind of way.

I started thinking – well, you know me – about the conditions under which we won’t need insurance.

There are, in my mind, six conditions under which people don’t need insurance. And because it is the holiday season (and because I’d always rather say things so that you can remember them) I’ll tell you about these using five characters from fairy tales and pop-fiction.

However, if you are not like these characters but like us, normal folk with property, dependents, fragility and moderate wealth you’ll have to do what we do and consult a specialist insurance provider like Freedom to Insure.

Or another one, if you prefer: just get on with it and take out or renew your insurance. Never mind the holidays, this is important: or even do it because of the holidays.

Did you know that 31 Brits have died since 1996 by watering their Christmas tree while the lights are one? Silly, I know. But things do happen.

Okay, now let me tell you why Cinderella and other favourites of yours don’t need insurance.

Cinderella

Yep. Cinderella doesn’t need insurance for one simple reason: she doesn’t have anything worth insuring.

She has no property and even her outfits for that three balls were borrowed (and result of magically transforming objects without value into glittering opulence).

Her life was not worth insuring either: her step-mother and her wicked step-sisters barely tolerated her and probably would have been pleased to see her go.

Before she met and charmed the Prince there was no one who cared enough – or about whom Cinderella cared enough – make it worth her insuring.

So, my friends, Cinderella, without property and/or dependents, certainly didn’t need any insurance.

Sleeping Beauty

Well, given that Sleeping Beauty should have been (and was) clearly expected to meet an accident early in life you’d think that she could do with some life insurance, right?

Wrong. Sleeping Beauty had no dependents and all her contemporaries went to sleep with her. Until the Prince kissed her and woke her up.

She didn’t need insurance; she just felt out of fashion.

Batman

With all his expensive cars, house and gadgets and his very high risk lifestyle one would think that Batman needs a good (and high premium) insurance.

But he doesn’t need insurance. The reason is that Batman is so fabulously wealthy that his wealth is his insurance. He needs no other cover!

Superman

Superman does dangerous stuff as well. But, as is well known, he is “…Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive. Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound…”

Superman is a superhero with extraordinary abilities. There is nothing much that can harm him although he does have an Achilles heel: he is vulnerable to green kryptonite.

However, the risks are so minute that they can be ignored and Superman can continue defending the human race without the worry of finding an appropriate insurance.

Robin Hood

Robin Hood doesn’t need to bother with insurance either (not that any self-respecting insurer will touch him with a barge-pole).

He lives outside the law and owns little apart from his weapons and the clothes on his back.

High risk is an inevitable part of his life – he fights, he jumps over walls and he runs away from jails (if legend is to be believed).

And to top it all, he has no known dependents (well, there is Maid Marian but she can take care of herself). Even if he had dependents, his support circle (his merry men) is so strong that they’d look after any relation of Robin who needs looking after.

Finally…

It’s time to end this trip into fairy tales, folk myths and pop icons.

The six conditions under which it’s not worth bothering with insurance are:

#1. You have nothing worth insuring (Cinderella)

#2. You have no dependents (Sleeping Beauty)

#3. You are opulently wealthy (Batman)

#4. Risks are minimal (Superman)

#5. Risks are too high (Robin Hood)

#6. Your support network is your insurance (Robin Hood).

I’m neither of them so I’m going to go upstairs and remind John to arrange the renewal of the house insurance. Oh, and I’ll check that our life insurance is still okay.

Do you identify with any of these characters?

If you don’t, please do yourself a favour and sort out your insurance!

 

photo credit: David J. Thomas via photopin cc