A
swimming pool can be an oasis of fun and relaxation during hot summer days, but
a good time can turn tragic if you don’t exercise safety and responsibility. If
you have a pool, NW Insurance Council encourages you to implement safety
measures in and around your pool and ensure you have adequate insurance if
something goes wrong.
More
than 3,500 people drown each year, averaging 10 deaths per day, and one in five
drowning victims is a child 14 years old or younger, according to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. To raise public awareness, pool safety events are being held
nationwide this week as part of the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC)
Pool Safely Campaign.
Injuries
to guests using your pool are covered by your Homeowners Insurance policy up
to the limits of your Liability Coverage. Your Liability Coverage also
will pay your legal defense costs, up to the coverage limits, if you are sued
because of an injury to a guest.
Standard
Homeowners Insurance policies provide a minimum of $100,000 Liability Coverage.
Most insurers offer Liability
Coverage up to $500,000 per incident. If you need more coverage, ask
your agent or insurance company about an Umbrella Liability Policy.
Umbrella policies offer additional liability protection of $1 million to
$5 million.
NW
Insurance Council and the Insurance
Information Institute offer the following safety tips to help you, your
family and guests enjoy the pleasures of a swimming pool:
- Never leave small children
unsupervised – even for a few seconds.
- Install fencing around the
swimming pool area to keep young children and others from using your pool
without your knowledge.
- Keep children away from pool
filters. The suction force may injure them or prevent them from
surfacing.
- Make sure everyone using your
pool knows how to swim. Novice swimmers should be accompanied by
good swimmers.
- Inspect the pool area regularly
for glass bottles, toys or other potential hazards.
- Never dive into an above-ground
pool and always check the water depth before plunging into an in-ground
pool.
- Don’t swim in the rain or
during lightning storms.
- Keep electronic equipment away
from the pool and wet pool decks.
- Don’t swim alone.
- Don’t allow anyone who has been
drinking alcohol to swim in the pool.
The NW Insurance Council is a non-profit, public-education organization funded by member insurance companies serving Washington, Oregon and Idaho.
