What’s on the Liability Landscape Horizon for Drone Manufacturers?

What’s on the Liability Landscape Horizon for Drone Manufacturers?
Alan H. Collier, Esq. publikoval 3. ledna 2018 článek určený zejména výrobcům bezpilotních letadel. Najdete ho na portálu: "expouav.com" a to na adrese: http://tinyurl.com/ycxovx4w
Cituji vybrané části článku:
"With the rapid rise in commercial use comes the inherent liability risk associated with it. 
The Rising Cost of Risk
"Beginning with the Turkish Airlines DC-10 crash north of Paris in March of 1974 killing 346, the cost of defending and paying settlements in commercial aviation accidents has sky rocketed. As an example, the 1996 Valujet DC-9 crash in the Everglades killing 103 cost the insurance industry an estimated $266 million and the 2000 Alaska Airlines MD-80 crash near California’s Channel Islands killing 88 had an estimated cost of a whopping $300 million. These cases are now two decades old with the industry cost getting bigger with the loss of larger aircraft involved in air disasters such as Air France Flight 447 which killed 228. With larger aircraft, comes larger risk with insurers now regularly offering aviation liability cover of $1 billion and more.
Ze závěru:
What Should You Do?
"In light of the looming landscape, what can UAV manufacturers do to prepare themselves for this next season?
• Talk to a Broker About Aviation Insurance – Although immature and untested at the beginnings of commercial flight, the aviation insurance industry is now very mature, well-funded, and specialized now with over 60 years of loss and claims experience. With the availability of large first dollar coverage specifically designed to meet the risk of aviation claims, having an aviation policy is essential to risk management as a UAV manufacturer whether commercial or military.
• Don’t Ignore Your Contracts – Companies often fail to focus serious attention on indemnity and insurance provisions in contracts (to either procure component parts and raw materials or to sell those parts or materials to an aircraft manufacturer) until faced with a substantial lawsuit. In those cases, the ability to contractually shift risk or, better yet, be an additional insured on someone’s insurance policy, are golden. Ask a lawyer either internal to your company or from an outside firm to review your contracts both up (selling) and down (buying) looking for a consistent company approach in contract negotiations with an eye toward risk.
• Assess Your Risk and Act Accordingly – Through either an internal or external risk audit, perform a realistic assessment of your risk in the event of an accident involving your aircraft or component part. A close look at document preparation and control, interaction between sales, design, manufacturing, legal and management, product traceability, as well as the tracking and analysis of warranty claims/issues with your products in the field, among other areas, are essential to not only avoiding problems, but being prepared when litigation hits your company. Such an assessment, coupled with a well considered strategic plan in the event of an accident could save your company from some of the brutal realities of facing an aviation lawsuit at some point in the history of your product."
"This is an exciting time in aviation! By the end of this decade commercial UAV flight should be in full swing with all the opportunities that come with it. While celebrating this new era in flight, let us also learn from history and be ready for the risk as well."
About the Author - Alan H. Collier, Esq.
He is the founder of the Aviation Risk Prevention Institute which provides Risk Prevention Training as well as Product Integrity, Safety and Risk Audits for aviation manufacturers."