Many families see Thanksgiving as a day that you spend with your family, giving thanks for all the blessings in your lives. Serious shoppers see Thanksgiving as a way to get some excellent deals, and a time to start stocking up on Christmas presents. Children see Thanksgiving as a day off of school, that they can spend watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Insurance companies don’t see Thanksgiving the same way. They see Thanksgiving as a day full of potential claims.
It might not surprise you to hear that Thanksgiving is the day when the most cooking fires occur. Thanksgiving is the day when many people traditionally expect to have a large meal, with turkey, stuffing, casseroles, sweet potatoes, pumpkin pies, and whatever else a particular family is accustomed to having. The result is that you are going to have lots of people who have never cooked these foods before trying frantically to get it right. You also have a large amount of family gathered in the home, which may cause the cook to leave the kitchen unattended for a while. These circumstances create the potential for cooking fires to start.
The risk gets even greater for those who choose to deep fry their turkey. Many of the deep fryers are unstable, and can easily tip over if not placed on a level surface. If so, this would allow gallons of heated grease to spill out, igniting everything in it’s path. Due to cold weather, some people will decide to place their turkey fryers inside their garage, or on their deck or porch. This increases the chances of a house fire occurring.
Homeowners insurance is designed to cover the costs of replacing or repairing a house that has been damaged or destroyed by fire, (among other things). It also covers the cost of replacing property that was inside the house. Insurance companies make their profit by not having to pay out on claims. Therefore, Thanksgiving day might make these companies a bit nervous.
What other risks do insurance companies see when they think of Thanksgiving? They might also be concerned about having to pay out a lot of health insurance claims. A fire in a house filled with people might cause some or all of the people to become severely injured, leading to expensive medical bills. Even a small cooking fire can cause severe burns, and those burns will need to be treated.
Thanksgiving is also a day when a lot of people will be traveling, even if the weather is very bad. Many people will feel the need to rush, or take risks while driving that one wouldn’t normally take, in an effort to get to Grandmother’s house on time for dinner. This means that insurance companies are worried that they will have to pay out on a lot of car insurance claims this week.
Image by CJ Sorg on Flickr