BY RICHARD L. FRICKER
It was always an axiom around my grandmother’s house that you did not toot your own trumpet. But then, there is the J.J. Cale comment from years ago, “Aint nobody goin’ do your jive for you, but you.”
So it is with gun liability insurance.
Following the gun legislation hearings on Capitol Hill Wednesday the conversation edged to liability insurance for firearms. NPR did a lengthy piece on the subject during its morning news cycle Thursday, describing the similarities between insuring guns and insuring cars.
Liability insurance for guns is a good idea. In fact it’s such a good idea The Observer has been talking about it since Dec. 18, 2012. [Heroes, Cowards, Loons and Solutions]
The beauty of liability insurance is simple: The insurance company asks all the questions, does all the background checks, makes all the decisions as to who gets insured and for how much. They also keep the government informed as to who has insurance and who doesn’t, just like they do with cars. And everyone wants the other guy to have car insurance.
As to the argument that bad guys won’t get insurance the answer is simple. Just as many states do with automobiles, although it was designed with illegal immigrants in mind, a gun can be confiscated for lack of insurance – just like a car.
This actually provides police with a non-lethal method of getting illegal guns off the streets without filing all those messy felony criminal charges.
What would make the plan even better? Make insurance mandatory for any sale of a firearm.
Liability insurance also provides political cover for politicians afraid of the NRA. Approving insurance has nothing to do with restricting the “right” to bear arms. Insurance just protects every citizen from misfire, reckless discharge or a missed target.
The question to the NRA enhanced politician is simple: Why don’t you want me protected from the stray bullet?
Is the NRA so sweet, their money so dear, Wayne LaPierre so charming as to be bought by the wounds of the innocent?
Gun insurance would go a long way to calm the political waters and pull the teeth of the NRA.
Liability insurance for guns is an idea whose time may have arrived. Politicians understand insurance companies – they’ve cashed enough of their checks and ridden on enough of their planes.
– Richard L. Fricker lives in Tulsa, OK and is a regular contributor to The Oklahoma Observer. His latest book, The Last Day of the War, is available at https://www.createspace.com/3804081 or at www.richardfricker.com.
My interest is in getting insurance in place to protect persons injured by guns. I don’t think that it should be done by a liability (lawsuite) model but handled like personal injury protection in no-fault states for cars. The systems in several states would protect a pedestrian injured in a hit and run accident just like a gun version would protect a drive-by shooting victim.
The best way would be to require the manufacturers to have insurance that only lets the insurer off the hook if another insurer picks up responsibility for the gun. Uninsured guns could have a pool to pay just like uninsured cars.
I disagree, because people can barely afford paying a car insurance so how would they be able to pay for gun insurance?
I also think that if you take the guns away it will be another issue we would have to resolve and i dont think its worth all the chaos its going to cause
The thought of having to purchase liability insurance on guns is insane! The more guns you own or purchase the higher the insurance would be. In this stuggling economy, people can barely afford to purchase liabilty insurance for their cars, let alone for their guns. Not to metion, that crimanals drive cars everyday without insurance i’m absolutely sure they would carry or own guns without giving any thought to insurance.
In concusion, i feel that having to go to an insurance company to answer questions about guns in your home gives people accsees to personal information. It is also saying to the government, hey this person has this in their house which should not be any of their bussiness. I hope you realize this is a horrible idea and change your views.
Mr. Fricker I am struggling with this one . Insurance on guns maybe if it will slow crime down. Will it stop all of the senseless shooting . Will people be more caring about their fellow man and keep insurance on their guns or will it be like car insurance take their tags .
Our fore fathers believed in the rights to bare arms and so do I. You Mr. Fricker and those like you who are trying to interfere with the civil rights are as crazy as poop is stinky.By making it unbareable to own guns leaglly good citizen will be the ones that suffer. Why are you not looking at the fact that the guns use in most crimes are stolen or obtained illeagly.
Mr. Fricker, I agree with you in this article.
I believe putting insurance on guns is a pretty good idea. To get insurance on a gun, like in a car, one would have to have a license and to have a license, one would have to have some type of training. So having a insurance would make people more comfortable knowing that this person has training with a gun. Unlike if a person doesn’t has insurance people would worry about two things. One, people would worry that this person is out there with a gun and no experience on how it use it. Second, if this does accidentally shoot someone and doesn’t have insurance, who would take care of the situation?
Last thing, yes there will be people that will own guns illegally, but this isn’t trying to take away gun violence completely, it’s trying to decrease it even if its not by a lot
With the thought…”if you want something done right then you better do it yourself” rings true as well. We need to stand up for what we want and what we believe we need. If we feel we need gun liability insurance then we need to make sure it is set up the way we want it not what someone else dictates. Just like with car insurance some do and some don’t get it. Those that don’t get it take a chance. The same could be said for gun liability insurance… It’s your right to chose but their might be a price to pay that’s not worth it if you don’t get it. Insurance isn’t bad it’s just the system in how they go about getting you to have it. Protection isn’t bad if its done the right way.