Posted by Greg Mossman on April 19, 2004 at 19:55:44:
In Reply to: insurance requires waivers posted by Chris on April 19, 2004 at 09:46:47:
That's because it's "dive professional" insurance, assuming you are taking a supervisory or leadership role among the divers with whom you dive because a court might assume the very same thing. But that has no bearing on the most common buddy pair up, where neither diver is a DM or instructor.
I've never been requested by my homeowners insurance and umbrella coverage to require waivers of those I dive with, however, were I not an instructor, it would likely cover me in the event I were sued by the estate of my dive buddy. Damages caused by failing to render professional services are usually excluded from homeowners policies, so cautious dive professionals are recommended to obtain waivers even from casual dive buddies.