PPS covers WITS Cape to Rio yacht race

Competing against extreme weather and a host of international teams in a race across the Atlantic Ocean and coming in 6th place were six WITS students, with a corrected elapsed time of 23 days, 18 hours and 41 minutes.

Key to the preparation for the Alladin-Amtec WITS team, which consisted of current and alumni members of the WITS University Yacht Club, was ensuring that they had adequate hazardous pursuits cover for their extreme adventure, for what has been considered one of the toughest races in recent years.

According to Chris de Klerk, executive director at PPS, it is particularly important for all consumers who may engage in activities such as sailing, paragliding, quad biking or other extreme sports to consider having the appropriate cover against death or disability, especially when dependents - including family members and employees - are involved.

Grateful for support

Patrick Chappel, president of the Medical Students Council and Health Science Students Council, says that he is grateful for the support that PPS has given the team for the adventure they have just taken part in, which many others regarded as too risky and unattainable for students.

"Through this partnership, we had the necessary insurance needed for a race of this nature, especially taking into account the potentially life-threatening risks."

De Klerk says that like the sailors who took part in the race, those who plan on doing any leisure activity that would be considered a 'hazardous pursuit' by your insurer need to ensure that they are fully covered in the event of an accident.

"Insurance providers may not cover consumers in the event of an accident, if the policy taken out contains specific exclusions for this type of activity. It is therefore important that consumers who engage in these types of activities ensure that they are adequately covered."

Worldwide cover

He says that PPS covers members across the globe, be it due to travel, emigration or partaking in an international sport. "When selecting the right type of insurance, consumers should find cover that will also include protection against hazardous pursuits or dangerous sports, such as motorised racing, scuba diving or sailing across the Atlantic Ocean."

It is vital for consumers to speak to their broker, as most policies require people to apply for the additional cover at an extra premium, which can often prove to be very expensive compared with the cost of an ordinary policy. "It's not cheap to get coverage for activities that are perceived as hazardous. In fact, some insurers not only automatically exclude coverage for hazardous pursuits, but will also refuse to provide cover against such activities at all," De Klerk concludes.