insurance

[SgtMaj]

Should I get specific beekeeping insurance or an umbrella policy before I start keeping bees, in case one of the kids in the neighborhood get's stung?  Or will my normal homeowners policy take care of it?

[Moonshae]

How will they prove that it was your bee, and not a yellowjacket, wasp, or some other stinging insect that stung their kid?

As long as you aren't violating your city/town codes by keeping bees, I can't imagine that homeowners wouldn't cover something that happened in your yard.

FYI, I live on 1/5 acre. I have 3 full size hives and 2 nucs in my backyard. Between my two next door neighbors, there are 5 kids under the age of 10, and more if you go a few more houses away. No one has been stung yet (except me, while tending the hives). Being proactive and explaining away the natural fears of people is the best preventative you can have. Being discrete can be a close second. In my case, I cleared things with my next door neighbors, since they'd likely see me working the hives, and keeping it secret would not work. They were both fine. The promise of honey worked very well to make them more accepting. :)

[SgtMaj]

How will they prove that it was your bee, and not a yellowjacket, wasp, or some other stinging insect that stung their kid?

It would be enough that I have a hive and they got stung by a honey bee.  Even in civil court, they don't have to prove it, they only have to show at least 51% likelyhood.

As long as you aren't violating your city/town codes by keeping bees, I can't imagine that homeowners wouldn't cover something that happened in your yard.

The only reason I think they might not is if they got stung in their own yards, or in the street.

FYI, I live on 1/5 acre. I have 3 full size hives and 2 nucs in my backyard. Between my two next door neighbors, there are 5 kids under the age of 10, and more if you go a few more houses away. No one has been stung yet (except me, while tending the hives). Being proactive and explaining away the natural fears of people is the best preventative you can have. Being discrete can be a close second. In my case, I cleared things with my next door neighbors, since they'd likely see me working the hives, and keeping it secret would not work. They were both fine. The promise of honey worked very well to make them more accepting. :)

I prefer discrete... it was about 5 months before my neighbor's knew I had chickens... though at some point one of my neighbors did call the county extn service... concerned that I might be bringing bird flu into the neighborhood.  I actually got a kick out of that.  (this was a neighbor who also thought my okra was pot... and made claims to my employer at the time that I was growing pot in my backyard... fortuneately my employer knew the difference between okra and pot, so, there's no love lost if my chickens ticked him off.)

[dpence]

Some people have wierd notions.  Imagine, thinking okra was pot...that's funny.  Most of my neighbors are reasonably intelligent, although I have one who is questionable.  I have .8 acre here at home and have eight hives going strong.  One thing that is an advantage, I live in an agricultural area, so I also have hives on a friends farm.  Should the town get crappy about bees, I have locations elsewhere to place my hives.  Funny thing, most of my neighbors have noticed an increase in thier fruits and vegatables since I started keeping bees.  So far so good.

David

[octagon]

Should I get specific beekeeping insurance or an umbrella policy before I start keeping bees, in case one of the kids in the neighborhood get's stung?  Or will my normal homeowners policy take care of it?

why rock the boat, it's hard enough to run a side business and still break even without bringing on more regulations.

[Pond Creek Farm]

I am unaware of specific bee keeping insurance.  Typically farm policies cover broader exposures than would a homeowners, but you live in town, and so that is really not an option.  As far as umrella liability policies, I cannot imagine why you would not want one anyway.  Typically, an umbrella applies not only to homeowners liability but also to auro liability.  (Remember, as far as incurring liability, you are far more likely to do it with your car than with a bee or anything else associated with your house).

The trick is to make sure that you get UM (uninsured motorist) and UIM (underinsured motorist) coverages within the umbrella.  It will cost more, but it is worth it. Most people worry about being sued for ore insurance than they have, but I am far more worried about being injured by someone who carries the minimum insurance (in MO it is 25k) or none at all.  I am reasonably certain that in the event I am serisously injured or killed that 25k or 100k is simply not going to cut it for me or my family.  For this reason, I carry a 3 million umbrella.  If I get hit by someone who carries small limits, my own insurance will pay out.   I strongly recommend that everyone purchase this insurance.  (one million is typical and generally sufficient, I am simply paranoid about such things given my line of work).

As for being sued for keeping bees, I have never heard of it That does not mean, however,  it cannot occur. Proving that your bee stung someone is going to be a pretty high hurdle to leap, and proving that you were negligent in allowing a bee to sting someone makes that hurdle all the higher.  If you really wanted to wear a belt and suspenders, check the local ordingances so that you can be sure you comply and then post your property against trespassing and warn of the presence of bees. That, however, is really overkill and certainly goes against your stated desire to run beneath the radar.

[Brian D. Bray]

You can get insurance riders to cover almost everything, even beehives.  Check with your homeowner or tenant's insurer to see what they have available.  A rider should cost less than a straight policy as long as it is a hobby.  If you are  doing more commercial types of things and a business insure should be sought.