Page 16 - January 2022

INSURANCE
The State of Aviation Insurance
by Kyle White
As 2022 begins, inflation is a recurring conversation topic. It has become impossible to ignore the increased expenses associated with everyday goods, services and commodities. As aviators, we are mindful of the expenses associated with operating our aircraft. The King Air community, as with all turbine aircraft, has seen an increase in their insurance premiums. The aviation insurance market has been in a hard state for nearly three years. The premiums have been increasing, while ancillary coverages have been decreasing or eliminated altogether. Within the industry, it is a constant discussion of what has caused the increases in hull and liability premiums and when it may peak. Finally, we have reasons to believe the aircraft insurance market may be improving in 2022 or at least be “less bad.”
Before 2019, King Air premiums were at all-time lows with unbelievable coverages included. Annual full- motion, simulator-based training wasn’t necessarily a firm requirement and ancillary coverages were broad, offering higher liability limits that were easily obtainable for single pilot operations. Insurance carriers also didn’t
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cringe when you signed an FBO hangar lease waiving their rights to subrogate for damage that may have been caused by a line attendant.
A strong attribute to the soft market was an abundance of supply. By some measure, there were three times as many companies writing King Air insurance in 2018 as
JANUARY 2022