Taking out an insurance policy for certain things is but to be expected. Assuming that we can afford it, these include health insurance policies and life insurance policies. There are policies that are required by law – car insurance and in some cases, home insurance.
Of course, the quirky side of being human is never far away. With any topic, there will always be the exception to the rule. In the realm of insurance, there are quite a few things that have been insured that will make you raise your eyebrows – at the very least.
Want a little bit of out of this world entertainment? Here are some of the weirdest things ever insured.
Tastebuds
I’ve been criticized one time too many by friends who consider their palate superior to my very simple tastes. They say that tastebuds have to be trained to appreciate the finer points of food, and even more important, tastebuds have to be taken care of. Little did I know that there is someone who has an even more extreme view of tastebuds.
Enter food critic Egon Ronay, who insured his tastebuds in 1957 for a whopping $400,000. I suppose that, bearing his career in mind, he did have enough justification to protect those tiny gross-looking things on his tongue.
Legs
It may not be that weird to think about insuring body parts now, thanks to Hollywood personalities, but if you really give it some more thought, at the most basic level, it is weird! What started it all was the legs of Betty Grable, who insured them for $1 million each in the 1940s.
Alien Abduction
The world is full of crazies, and the fact that tens of thousands of people have bought alien abduction insurance policies is a testament to that. Need I say more? (I’ll probably eat my words if I ever become an alien abductee…)
Immaculate Conception Insurance
Religious matters are sensitive topics, so it is wise to avoid them if possible, but learning about real people taking out insurance against the possibility of immaculate conception is unnerving. I can go on and on about why this does not make sense, but let’s stop at ‘It’s strange’!
Loch Ness Monster
Some time in the 70s, whisky maker Cutty Sark offered 1 million GBP to anyone who can capture the Loch Ness monster and bring it back alive. Apparently, something strange went on in the big guys’ heads as the possibility of someone achieving that became very real to them. In order to safeguard them against that possibility, the whisky guys took out an insurance policy from Lloyds.
Do you think you can top these weird insurance policies?
Image via Toronto Sun