Should I get insurance?

[Capt Jim Wyatt]

Did your medical cover any of it? How about transportation?

I had Valencia & Buckley diver protection insurance and it paid 100% of the balance of the claim that my primary insurance did not pay.

I have DAN now.

 

[boulderjohn]

When I had DCS, the hospital took all my insurance information, including DAN. I had to fill out a form for DAN. I had two days of treatment. DAN is supplemental, paying what the primary insurance does not cover. My insurance probably sent me a breakdown on what was paid, and my wife probably looked at it. I just know I didn't pay a dime.

But DAN does more than make the payments. It is important to understand that not every hospital has a recompression chamber, and many hospitals with recompression chambers will not treat divers (believe it or not). When I did get DCS, Duke Dive Medicine of ScubaBoard (who is not DAN) did what DAN would have done if I had called them instead. He told me to go to the hospital, he told me what hospital to go to, and he told me the doctor who would treat me had been advised that I was on my way.

When my diving buddy had symptoms while in Cozumel, DAN told him to go to the chamber, and they told him where to go. When I started having unusual symptoms an hour later, the same guy at DAN told me it didn't sound like DCS and didn't advise me to go. (It turned out to be Covid-19.)

 

[BoltSnap]

In case no one told you this or you missed it, run don't walk and get DAN insurance...

 

[JoeTPhilly]

When I had DCS, the hospital took all my insurance information, including DAN. I had to fill out a form for DAN. I had two days of treatment. DAN is supplemental, paying what the primary insurance does not cover. My insurance probably sent me a breakdown on what was paid, and my wife probably looked at it. I just know I didn't pay a dime.

But DAN does more than make the payments. It is important to understand that not every hospital has a recompression chamber, and many hospitals with recompression chambers will not treat divers (believe it or not). When I did get DCS, Duke Dive Medicine of ScubaBoard (who is not DAN) did what DAN would have done if I had called them instead. He told me to go to the hospital, he told me what hospital to go to, and he told me the doctor who would treat me had been advised that I was on my way.

When my diving buddy had symptoms while in Cozumel, DAN told him to go to the chamber, and they told him where to go. When I started having unusual symptoms an hour later, the same guy at DAN told me it didn't sound like DCS and didn't advise me to go. (It turned out to be Covid-19.)

Hyperbaric Chambers Are Turning Away Divers. Will There Be One Nearby When You Need It?

Unfortunately, it’s hard to make a business case for treating divers versus wound and burn care victims. As a result, many hyperbaric chambers in the US no longer treat divers, leaving fewer facilities available for divers in need and increasing their post-dive time to treatment. InDEPTH editor...

gue.com

 

[tursiops]

We are using a very reputable company, however they are not affiliated with DAN so we can't get the student membership that DAN offers for free while we are in training.

DAN has a student diver insurance program that covers the student during their OW class or basic training that is free to the student. The shop or instructor that is insured through DAN signs them up for this coverage and the student can upgrade to a regular membership if they like after they are certified.

The shop does not need to affiliated with DAN. The sign-up for the students is done by the instructor, who must be a DAN member. Info is here and the instructor just goes here to enroll the students.
It is hard to imagine an instructor who is not a DAN member.
I'd be suspicious of that shop and its instructors if they don't know about this, and are unwilling to do it.

 

[tursiops]

Hyperbaric Chambers Are Turning Away Divers. Will There Be One Nearby When You Need It?

Unfortunately, it’s hard to make a business case for treating divers versus wound and burn care victims. As a result, many hyperbaric chambers in the US no longer treat divers, leaving fewer facilities available for divers in need and increasing their post-dive time to treatment. InDEPTH editor...

gue.com

This is why DAN says to contact them first; they know which chambers you can go to.

 

[rick00001967]

DAN has a student diver insurance program that covers the student during their OW class or basic training that is free to the student. The shop or instructor that is insured through DAN signs them up for this coverage and the student can upgrade to a regular membership if they like after they are certified. The student can't sign up on there own for this program only the insured "business". This was something we used to explain to students before online instruction took over the classroom portion of OW.

very smart of DAN to do that. it is a great way to recruit customers.

no wonder i have never heard of it. our shop was not insured by DAN

thx for that info

 

[rick00001967]

It is hard to imagine an instructor who is not a DAN member.
I'd be suspicious of that shop and its instructors if they don't know about this, and are unwilling to do it.

i was an instructor and i have never been insured by DAN. our shop had a blanket policy for all staff but it was not thru DAN. perhaps it was different for us as we were an ssi shop and were not independent instructors.
but i can certainly see that many independent instructors might carry DAN insurance and it would only make sense that they register their students to be covered during training.

 

[rick00001967]

Not true for most dive insurance plans.

i was referring to my credit card coverage, not a dive specific insurance.

 

[formernuke]

Remember we not talking about pro liability insurance but dive accidents insurance, totally different things