Opting out of BDI

[alanf]

BDI was sitting on reserves of about half a million quid last time I checked.

Hypothetical scenario - associations quit one by one until only one left. Does that BKA inherit the lot?

An interesting question. As a regulated insurer, and a mutual business there are various regulatory bodies who might have rules that cover the situation. Otherwise it probably depends on the constitution. A local horticultural association recently folded and the assets were disposed of charitably; the only item of significant value was a hut which was given to the scouts next door. Since a declared BDI aim is to further disease research, it should be possible to transfer any residual assets to a trust with that purpose.

 

[For want of a better word]

Since a declared BDI aim is to further disease research, it should be possible to transfer any residual assets to a trust with that purpose.


And that alone is worrying enough?...... I do hope that if BDI insurance from that particular organisation ceases that all the legal wrangling dose not mop up all of the assets!

I have never taken out BDI as I could not see it being of any real benefit.

 

[roche]

Since a declared BDI aim is to further disease research, it should be possible to transfer any residual assets to a trust with that purpose.


And that alone is worrying enough?...... I do hope that if BDI insurance from that particular organisation ceases that all the legal wrangling dose not mop up all of the assets!

I have never taken out BDI as I could not see it being of any real benefit.

I wonder if the greatest benefit of BDI is actually the research it has sponsored?

 

[pargyle]

I wonder if the greatest benefit of BDI is actually the research it has sponsored?

Well ... if Murphy's law has anything to do with it you can guarantee that the day after you dispense with BDI will be the day your colony contracts one of the foul broods !!! For what it costs ... peace of mind !

 

[dilys]

My understanding is that the way the BDI constitution was initially written every member of an association must be fully paid up for every one of their hives. If just one hive in an association is not covered then non are. Apparently though the rule is not normally enforced so in practice it's optional for everybody.

 

[MuswellMetro]

Well ...


However, it was the third part liability insurance through the BBKA that was mostly of interest to me and I didn't think that you could have the general insurance without the BDI ?

Our Association AGM is tomorrow night and I think a question has to be asked. I don't have a problem with BDI ... they appear to be a non-profit organisation run by volunteer directors (although there are 12 of them !) and it is owned by the Associations who subscribe but there seems to be a concensus on here that it's a waste of money ?

The third party insurance offered by BBKA is underwritten via Tower Insurance, BDI is a separate insurance company

if you want your hive boxes and bees covered them one local assoocation near me has a NFU policyto cover theft and EFB/AFB losses though some household insurance can be extennded to cover garden hives

i also dont understand why BDI pay for OMF and Metal Queen excluders but not boxes

 

[Russel]

The third party insurance offered by BBKA is underwritten via Tower Insurance, BDI is a separate insurance company

if you want your hive boxes and bees covered them one local assoocation near me has a NFU policyto cover theft and EFB/AFB losses though some household insurance can be extennded to cover garden hives

i also dont understand why BDI pay for OMF and Metal Queen excluders but not boxes

Our BKA has an "all risks" NFU policy covers £12k kit and livestock - honeybees anywhere in the UK & at several sites at any time @ £200± pa.
NFU increased cover from 4.5k to 12k with no increase but we were due for renewal and had mentioned Towergate to them?
We've not had cause to test pay out yet but one day soon...............

 

[Norfolk]

...........We've not had cause to test pay out yet but one day soon...............

Fingers crossed you never do.

 

[For want of a better word]

Fingers crossed you never do.

That is why I have a smallholders policy with the NFU !

 

[alanf]

My understanding is that the way the BDI constitution was initially written every member of an association must be fully paid up for every one of their hives. If just one hive in an association is not covered then non are. Apparently though the rule is not normally enforced so in practice it's optional for everybody.

Is there a copy of the BDI constitution online? I can't see it on their website. Is it legitimate for an insurance company not to make all the conditions of their cover explicit? The guidance they provide in the form of FAQ says that all hives in a shared apiary must be covered for any to qualify. Relatively easy if you're sharing with, say, one other who you know well. Not so good if you're on an association apiary where there are many other beekeepers. Have they all got subs up to date, haven't nominally transferred responsibility to a relative or taken in one swarm or made a Pagden or nuc box over their estimate? All those have applied in recent years and most of the members on the association site probably don't realise their hives have not been covered.

If anyone is relying on rules not being enforced, then you're very much on dodgy ground. If the assessors are making payments that the rules would disqualify, that is disadvantaging all the other members who do stick to the letter of the rules. Regulators in the insurance industry could take a very dim view of any trustee who is aware that is common practice.

 

[dpearce4]

I haven't bothered covering mine as there was a person on one of my sites that didn't have it, also have a paynes site within 1/2mile which invalidates it as they wont have bdi being to big.

 

[BeeJayBee]

So, does that mean that if there is a beekeeper without insurance within flying range of your own bees, then your bees aren't covered by insurance?

How would the insurers know where there are other bees?

 

[VEG]

reading through it my take on it is if an association elects to have bdi then all members have to have the insurance.
Can anyone else confirm this?

 

[fiftyjon]

So, does that mean that if there is a beekeeper without insurance within flying range of your own bees, then your bees aren't covered by insurance?

How would the insurers know where there are other bees?

I don't think it quite works like that, I understand it's the colonies within the designated apiary site that are counted and whether the owners are covered for all their hives that may also be elsewhere.

 

[chutalot]

reading through it my take on it is if an association elects to have bdi then all members have to have the insurance.
Can anyone else confirm this?

Yes - if the association joins BDI then all its beekeeping members must have BDI insurance - generally the £2 which covers 3 hives is part of the membership subscription. If you have more than 3 hives then you add the additional premium to your subscription.

Another comment suggested that a local bee farmer was 'too big' to have BDI - they would be insured under 'Scheme B'.

 

[alanf]

Yes - if the association joins BDI then all its beekeeping members must have BDI insurance - generally the £2 which covers 3 hives is part of the membership subscription. If you have more than 3 hives then you add the additional premium to your subscription.

Another comment suggested that a local bee farmer was 'too big' to have BDI - they would be insured under 'Scheme B'.

This has come up before, as ITLD confirmed no bee farmers to his knowledge have disease insurance. It's just not cost effective.

 

[Hivemaker.]

reading through it my take on it is if an association elects to have bdi then all members have to have the insurance.
Can anyone else confirm this?

Yes - if the association joins BDI then all its beekeeping members must have BDI insurance

I don't don't have BDI insurance, never have done, am a member of NDBA, so going by this, that means that none of the other members are insured,what a lot of money wasted there.

 

[VEG]

I don't don't have BDI insurance, never have done, am a member of NDBA, so going by this, that means that none of the other members are insured,what a lot of money wasted there.

It seems that is correct


Craig

 

[alanf]

I don't think it quite works like that, I understand it's the colonies within the designated apiary site that are counted and whether the owners are covered for all their hives that may also be elsewhere.

The terms used in the BDI site FAQ is that the rules say "shared apiary". The examples given are that hives at the opposite side of a field would not be considered the same apiary, in the same garden they would.

What does appear to be questionable ethically is that if you want BDI insurance for your hives at home, for instance, you also have to insure your hives elsewhere in a shared apiary. Even if you know that apiary is shared with someone not covered by BDI insurance and that those insured hives will never qualify for a payout you have to pay for the cover. I can't think of any other insurance policy that applies those terms, a travel policy covers you personally for instance, it doesn't rely on all the others in the party being covered by the same insurer.

 

[BeeJayBee]

Can anybody get confirmation on this please. Is there somewhere where this rule is written down?