Info Is DAN Insurance worthwhile?

[makar0n]

(...) The general consensus is that they're doing dives outside of their skill level, which was publicized in their last dramatic event that was what... only 4 months ago? It's like watching a guy go to 200' on an AL80. We all know you shouldn't. And if the guy is doing that and thinks it's ok, then what else is he doing that he doesn't even know he's doing wrong? Probably pushing the envelope hoping to capture some dramatic content for the YT channel. Huge.red.flags.
(...)

Been too quiet since...nothing like a good old drama to get those clicks, and this is working perfect. Just look, we are on page 20 already, even some bums from Europe are chiming in. Instead of a professional accident analysis, that could have actually benefited dive community, hurr durr, its all DAN's fault, nothing with us "experienced" divers goofing around and having steaks, maybe some brewskis, and ignoring any medical issues like real cowboys do.
We don't really present any real evidence neither, other than possibly exaggerated own statements and classic Murica™ legal threats about some call records, then proceed with defaming an organization that has done more good for diving than we can even dream of (perfect sentence @acxc ). And showing around how rich we really are by waving all the credit cards.
Also, let's not forget about our channel sponsor, AMEX.

Would be rather interesting if it somehow turned out it was all inflated and DAN made a correct call.

I will see myself out. Youtube "celebrities" give me a rash.

 

[feldomatic]

Their dive and DAN's decision tree to authorize treatment aside, there's 2 things I'm seeing in this:

1. It's the 21st century. They should be able to push pre-filled forms (they got all of that info at registration)

I had a non-diving medical emergency a few years back and the admitting was trying to get stuff like this...it's absolute hell. Then when I came to a few days later, tried to get me to fill out the forms by hand when I could barely move. Treat first, administrate later.

2. Is DAN owned by AIG? because one of the emails Gus put up on the screen was the forms being pushed from an AIG email address. If this is the case I think this is more a case of burdensome bureaucratic bs pushed by a parent corp who has failed to understand the product of their child corp.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

Would be rather interesting if it somehow turned out it was all inflated and DAN made a correct call.

I couldn't agree with what you wrote more, but this was the exact feeling I got by watching. Sensationalized for viewers, meanwhile crucifying DAN to get clicks.

 

[acxc]

I would prefer to hear from other divers that required a chamber ride and their experience in having that organised by DAN where time to get treatment is of importance.

After all, isn't that why we have dive insurance!

All good and well when needing transport to get home after breaking a bone or falling sick due to non-diving reasons, but that's not important or relevant in Woody's case.

Happy to start. In my case I called DAN a full day and a half after a dive where I developed symptoms I didn't (want to) believe were associated with DCS. The person I spoke to convinced me to proceed immediately to the closest hospital with a chamber. Because I was otherwise completely healthy, the security staff at the hospital literally laughed at me and said "you're going to be waiting here awhile". Less than 10 minutes later I was taken back because DAN had been in communication with the hospital to let them know my situation and to expect me. From there the only administrative delay in getting me into the chamber was waiting for approval from my primary insurance, which I was later told was expedited because they knew I had supplementary insurance in the form of DAN. Granted this all occurred in a well-established US hospital but I will maintain that my experience using DAN was overwhelmingly positive and the insurance worth it a thousand times over.

 

[Joneill]

I would prefer to hear from other divers that required a chamber ride and their experience in having that organised by DAN where time to get treatment is of importance.

After all, isn't that why we have dive insurance!

It's one reason why we have dive-specific insurance - an important one for sure, but not the only one.

 

[The Chairman]

But Pete, yours was not a diving accident. And yes I've seen your response later when going through umpteen pages.

Different experiences should also be examined in determining the "worthlessness" of an entity.

I don't know the victim, so I am free of any emotional ties to this situation. I have not known anyone to have been abandoned by DAN, including myself, so I have to ask why? Could they have made a mistake? Sure. Were they given conflicting diagnoses/symptoms by the victim? That's also a distinct possibility. After all, they were in denial for over 24 hours. I imagine that their descriptions of the problem were all over the place. Not that I was privy to those discussions. It only makes sense that as their assessment of their own situation evolved, that their description of symptoms did too.

People who think they know more than doctors are often their own worst enemy. They often self-diagnose, and rather than present their symptoms, they insist on their own diagnosis and are often incensed that medical personnel can't follow their logic. Add indignation (Do you know who I am???) and frustration, and quite often they end up delaying care, rather than accelerating it. Mind you, getting all perturbated about a situation will probably enhance any pain you're already having, so calm your butt down. Medical personnel want what's best for you, which means they want to make an accurate diagnosis. It's hard to do with the patient making demands and/or insulting statements about their competence rather than relating symptoms. Is this what happened? I don't know. I wasn't there. But I do know, that I never once tried to tell my doctors how to be a doctor, nor DAN how to be DAN, and I got immediate care.

As for the flight delay. It's easier to get local things happening, if you're local. Expecting an entity, many thousands of miles away, to know who can do what locally, is a bit ridiculous. It's not about the 'resources' available, but the proximity you are to less obvious resources.

My advice? If you ever find yourself hurt in a foreign country, hopefully you have full DAN insurance. Then do the following...

Seek aid sooner, rather than later.​

Turn your dive buddy into your advocate!​

You're in pain and they'll get less frustratred!​

Let the doctors do their jobs!​

Give them symptoms rather than diagnoses​

Don't think yourself more important than the next guy​

Keep as calm as possible​

Don't whine or complain until after it's all over​

Know that the doctors want what's best for you!​

Trust in the process!​

 

[34109411]

But it shows the character of the guys doing the dive. You can throw as much money into diving as you like, but after 100 dives in a cave you still only have 100 dives in a cave.

The general consensus is that they're doing dives outside of their skill level, which was publicized in their last dramatic event that was what... only 4 months ago? It's like watching a guy go to 200' on an AL80. We all know you shouldn't. And if the guy is doing that and thinks it's ok, then what else is he doing that he doesn't even know he's doing wrong? Probably pushing the envelope hoping to capture some dramatic content for the YT channel. Huge.red.flags.

Yes I watched the video so I could comfortably comment. I wish I hadn't. I want my time back. It felt like watching a bad reality show. They could have summed all that up in 25 min.. and this is the face that newer divers see. Why? Because technical diving done the correct way is boring to watch and uneventful (as it should be).

Let's go eat steaks while our friend stumbles around breathing 100% with DCS and we laugh about the days events... wtf? If he's bad enough to need O2 don't you think it should warrant a call to DAN asap.. and not 6 hours later?

They focused a lot on DAN and never really did anything about dissecting the day and what they could have done differnet (besides being dehydrated for which he wants to wear a pink diaper).. Instead it was get an AMEX card and and blame

 

[galodoido]

The newbie divers are freaking out. From the DT FB group.

View attachment 818766

EDITED: my comments are there, I just didn't find them earlier for some reason.

 

[Boarderguy]

Looks like they have admins actively filtering out comments. I asked Woody if it is common for him to go into 2.5h dives wearing a drysuit with no pee valve in it and my comment got deleted. They aren't allowing questions, it seems.

I've got a couple comments up on 2 of their recent videos admonishing their BS for saying DAN did not do their best. We'll see how long they last.

 

[galodoido]

Deleted