Padi Divemaster renewal and liability costs

[TCDiver1]

O-ring once bubbled...

That if I am only helping an instructor with classes then I do not need my own insurance and that his will cover it since he is the responsible party. Any truth to that? I don't ever plan to DM as a career or earn any money at it...it is strictly for fun.

As far as i know, instructors insurance just covers the instructor, not assistants. If i was you, i would not consider assisting without valid insurance. I dislike insurance costs just as much as anyone but IMO diving is not a place to skimp on being covered.

 

[O-ring]

gedunk once bubbled...
As far as i know, instructors insurance just covers the instructor, not assistants. If i was you, i would not consider assisting without valid insurance. I dislike insurance costs just as much as anyone but IMO diving is not a place to skimp on being covered.

This is a dumb question, but...why DM then? This is the question I am asking myself too (too bad I am already about 1/3 of the way through my DM class), but why do it? What is the point if you are not going to do it for a living or move on to instructor?

It seems like a lose-lose situation . I pay for costly insurance and I give up my weekends of wreck diving to go to a pool or kneel on a platform in a quarry? What's the point if I can't even do it for free?

 

[WreckWriter]

O-ring once bubbled...
What is the point if you are not going to do it for a living or move on to instructor?

No point other than bragging rights.

Tom

 

[WreckWriter]

As I recall, PADI won't renew you as active DM unless you have insurance. Am I wrong on this?

 

[O-ring]

WreckWriter once bubbled...


No point other than bragging rights.

Tom

Riiiight... ROFL. I just remembered why I did it...shop discounts and airfills. Is this not SOP for other shops?

 

[WreckWriter]

O-ring once bubbled...

Riiiight... ROFL. I just remembered why I did it...shop discounts and airfills. Is this not SOP for other shops?

Only if you're doing some sort of work for them. Visiting DMs get squat.

 

[O-ring]

WreckWriter once bubbled...


Only if you're doing some sort of work for them. Visiting DMs get squat.

Squat? You mean they come and help out at their own expense just for the fun of it?

I'll just sit tight until some people who are paying for the privilege of DMing come along and tell me what the point is. If I wasn't getting discounts and fills I would have to get my head examined for doing it. I don't mean fills whenever I want them either, but fills for the classes. I can't imagine paying to fill my tanks to help with a class...

 

[MikeFerrara]

PADI doesn't require a divemaster to have insurance but they should. Some agencies do require it I think. The instructors insurance generally does not cover divemasters.

I pay the insurance for our Divemeasters. I try to take care of some of their expenses. They never pay for air and they get as good of a deal on nitrox and trimix as what I get (actually better).

I do everything I can for them except pay them what they are worth. They don't get near enough for what they do and how good they do it. Of course I don't pay me anything either.

My DM's all have training and experience beyond DM training and they are all well paid professionals in the real world. I will never be able to pay them anywhere near what their time is worth. They do it because the want to.

If they decided they didn't want to do it it would take several years to replace them if I ever could.

 

[MechDiver]

MikeFerrara once bubbled...
PADI doesn't require a divemaster to have insurance but they should. Some agencies do require it I think. The instructors insurance generally does not cover divemasters.

When I was DMing I would have sworn you could not be an active DM without insurance. Has this changed recently Mike? They also had, I believe, a policy for those DMs who only assisted in classes which was cheaper than the full coverage.

Phil

 

[O-ring]

MechDiver once bubbled...


When I was DMing I would have sworn you could not be an active DM without insurance. Has this changed recently Mike? They also had, I believe, a policy for those DMs who only assisted in classes which was cheaper than the full coverage.

Phil

It seems that helping with classes would be either covered by the instructor's insurance or at least some type of cheaper rate....I would never be in charge of divers (certified or uncertified)...just assisting with classes under the supervision of an instructor with insurance.