Pokémon Go was released officially in the UK last week and if first week sales are a guide it looks set to become the most popular mobile app of all time. However, whilst people immerse themselves searching for Pokémon, there have been accidents reported as people stop paying attention to their surroundings.
Already in the US there have been incidents of motor accidents relatable to people driving whilst playing Pokémon Go or of players walking out into public roads as they search for Pokémon, without checking for oncoming vehicles.
Equally gamers have been involved in incidents of trespassing on private land, and causing property damage as they have stumbled into objects or even other people searching for new Pokémon to catch.
How can your insurance policy help?
Although we appreciate it is unlikely that someone would purchase insurance solely because of Pokémon Go or any other interactive game, it is a good way into understanding your insurance policy and how it may help you.
Firstly maintaining home insurance and specifically the Occupiers’ Liability section, will protect your liability through accidentally causing damage to other person’s property or unintentionally causing injury. These could be claims as diverse as from opening your umbrella and causing someone an eye injury, your dog biting a member of the public (providing it meets the policy terms and has not been registered under the Dangerous Dogs Act) or walking into someone causing them a head injury as you frantically search for a rare Pokémon.
As well as offering protection to your personal liability if you own a property or even development or empty land, ensuring you have property owner’s liability within your home insurance, building insurance or even in isolation as land liability is equally important. This type of insurance cover will defend claims bought about by the liability posed by the buildings and the land that you own. For example should a member of the public trip and suffer an unforeseen injury on your property as they search for Pokémon your insurers would seek to defend you and protect your legal costs.
Insuring your mobile device itself is just as important, whether it is loss from theft or accidentally dropping your device while hunting for a rare Ditto or even Moltres. Be wary of purchasing separate gadget or mobile phone insurance, this can be expensive when compared to adding it to your contents insurance policy under the personal possessions or all risks section. It is unlikely that your games and software will be insured but they should be backed up on a separate computer or within the cloud.
Finally as incidents occur of people driving and using their phone and subsequently causing accidents, although your motor insurance policy will react and pay for third party losses, if you are proven to be at fault, this is illegal and may lead to prosecution.
