Drones: a whole new world

With the ever-increasing use of drones for business and commercial purposes, the need to educate drone users and the general public around drone law has become critical and brokers are an automatic channel.

Brokers selling business and commercial drone insurance should be aware of the laws because the strict regulations in place are necessary to ensure the safety, security and privacy of South African citizens.

Regulated and controlled

The flying of drones should be strictly regulated and controlled. In particular, the laws around the flying of commercial drones must be comprehensive and closely monitored.

In the same way as a business would never operate an unlicensed vehicle on a public road or allow an unlicensed driver behind the wheel, so too should they be focusing on getting their drones and their pilots licensed and accredited.

South Africa was one of the first countries in the world to adopt laws around the use of drones. The legislation, which can be found in Part 101 of the South African Civil Aviation (CAA) regulations, came into effect on 1 July 2015. Many other countries have since followed suit.

It is important to remember that drones can occupy the same space as manned aircraft.

Without drone regulation, the potential for accidents is high. Insurers therefore simply cannot overlook this risk. Aviation insurance not only requires adherence to the local CAA regulations, it is also international best practice. Without this regulation, insurers cannot underwrite commercial drones. This approach is consistent globally. The requirements, however, have their detractors.

High barrier to entry

Most of us are aware of the argument that the CAA regulations are too stringent. There are those who believe that the requirements present too much of a barrier to entry for many businesses, both in terms of costs and limitations on where a drone may or may not fly.

However, the benefits of legislation far outweigh these considerations. The consequences of an unregulated environment are too dire to contemplate. These include illegal border crossings, smuggling, poaching, personal injury, and infringement of personal privacy rights – even terrorism. These are just some of the issues that our drone legislation addresses and controls.

As drones grow more sophisticated and affordable, the number of operators increases – both private and commercial.

The governing rules

Imagine if our skies were filled with unmanned aircraft flying around willy-nilly, all over the place. As it is, we anticipate a significant amount of recreational drone activity on South Africa’s beaches this coming December. It is all fun and games until a mid-air drone collision – potentially resulting in injury, loss of sight and damage to the general public and their property.

Commercial vs recreational

Drone technology is advancing so rapidly that legislation can barely keep up. To further complicate matters, the CAA regulations that govern recreational drone use differ from those that apply to commercial drones.

Drones that are used purely for recreation or sport fall under a different set of regulations to those used in business. Brokers must be sure to establish upfront what a drone is being used for before entering into discussions around insurance.

Drones for personal use are governed by the Recreation Aviation Administration – South Africa. The rules for commercial drones, which fall under the South African CAA, are extensive and relate to both business and commercial drone use.

Under the law, recreational drones may not be used for commercial purposes. There is one exception: farmers can use the same drone on owned land for private use. Insurance will fall away if an incident takes place involving a private drone that is being used to generate income.

If in any doubt about placing drone insurance business, brokers should speak to their underwriters and make sure their clients are properly protected under the law.