At its core, insurance is about preparing for the risk against potential loss, whether that takes the form of nightclub insurance preparing for the risk that something goes wrong in the establishment during an evening, or against the risk of a car breaking down or crashing.

The world of insurance can be particularly broad, as the more esoteric policies provided by establishments such as Lloyd’s of London prove.

However, if anything could possibly be stranger than insurance policies, that would be the huge number of bizarre true stories of people making claims on their insurance for the more unique reasons possible.

Here are just a few of the strangest.

 

Motivating Or Liable?

Professional liability insurance is a scheme that many professionals have if they are in a position to give advice. What it does is provide coverage in case their advice goes wrong and leads to a rather costly or painful mistake.

This happened in the case of one unfortunate motivational speaker. After asking a member of the audience to break a board with their hands, they managed to injure themselves, leading to a quick call to their insurance agent to ensure they could be easily compensated.

 

The Flames Of Passion

When people get married, it is sometimes common to get a form of wedding insurance that covers all types of scenarios from an “I don’t” at the altar to a sudden injury or illness at the reception.

One of the most unusual cases of this happening was during an otherwise beautiful beachside wedding, which was spoiled somewhat by the bride’s flowing dress catching fire.

The groom, thinking quickly, picked her up and threw her into the ocean to put it out, which may have put a dampener on the occasion.

 

The Dumbest Fraud That Ever Worked

In an example of insurance fraud so stupid that it is amazing it ever worked and will never work again, a severe hailstorm in a small town in the American Midwest gave a man a terrible idea.

He filed an insurance claim saying that the hail was an “act of god” that damaged his car in the storm.

The problem was that unless hailstones contain tiny hammers, it was clear that someone had simply taken a hammer to the car to pretend that hailstones had done it.

When faced with the truth, the man somehow doubled down and claimed that an attacker had, for reasons unknown, attacked the car with a hammer and beaten hundreds of divots into it.

Somehow, despite assessors having a pretty good idea who did it, because there was no proof the man had taken a hammer to his own car, the insurance company did pay out.

A Tragicomic Triumvirate

It is rare to see three claims arise from the very same slight accident, but one unfortunate driver managed to have an exceptionally rotten run of luck when he had a minor collision.

After rear-ending the car in front, he tried to back away only to hit the bumper of the car behind him. Clearly already feeling a bit shaken, he opened the door to step out of the car, only to bump into and knock over a cyclist.

Whilst an incredible comedy routine in hindsight, in the moment it must have been difficult to see the funny side.