Most people watch the sidesplitting antics of The Three Stooges
and try not to let their laughter spill their popcorn. Not Brenda
Shaw. Watching their 1947 classic, "Brideless Groom," the
Fredericksburg, Va.-based GEICO claims adjuster can't help but see
their hijinks as a cringe-inducing exposure to liability.
Brenda Shaw has a tough job. Every day she helps policyholders
when they need GEICO most, and she takes her work very seriously.
But convinced she would enjoy a break, and that there are lessons
to be learned from even the most ridiculous Hollywood fare, we
thought it would be fun to get her take on Larry, Moe and Shemp's
misadventures.* (We apologized to her in advance for our silly
questions.)
GEICO Now (GN): In "Brideless Groom,"
Shemp has just received an inheritance, but to collect it he must
get married within a matter of hours. In their frantic search to
find him a wife, Larry has had his knuckles crushed in a piano,
Shemp gets shaving cream in his eye and Moe sits on a steaming-hot
iron. Are these the sort of personal injuries that could be covered
in a homeowner policy?
Brenda Shaw (BS): Possibly, maybe even probably.
In a lot of homeowner policies, there's a type of coverage called
"medical payments to others." When an injury happens on the
property of an insured policyholder, regardless of how the injury
occurred, the injured party would be eligible to have their medical
expenses paid for via a claim filed through the insured homeowner's
policy.
GN: Even if the injuries seem intentional? These
are The Three Stooges, after all.
BS: Most policies have exclusions if an act is
intentional. For instance, the bureau drawer that Moe smashed over
Larry's head, that's an intentional act. But one of the fine
distinctions would be, did Moe intend to cause injury or was the
action taken for a different purpose? If the action wasn't intended
to cause injury, the medical payment might be considered a covered
loss.
GN: There's also an awful lot of property that
gets damaged in this movie.
BS: Breakage is not covered on a standard policy
(the item in question must be specifically scheduled for breakage).
And when it comes to public property, like the phone booth that
gets demolished, the destroyers would more than likely need to file
a liability claim.
GN: At one point they lose the wedding ring. What
if they didn't recover it?
Shaw: There's an endorsement that can be added to
a home-owner policy specifically for jewelry, as well as furs and
some collectibles. It provides all-risk coverage for specified
items. Otherwise, there are certain limits set in a homeowner
contract for these items.
GN: Do you have any advice for Shemp and his new
wife?
BS: Get life insurance. More than anything else,
with the inheritance involved, he'll want to specifically list his
heirs and assigns. Using my imagination here, I'd assume they're
probably transitioning from an apartment to a house. Naturally,
they'd want to have the new piece of property properly insured,
too.
GN: And for the remaining Stooges?
BS: Get umbrella insurance [laughing].
Absolutely!
Visit the GEICO Claims
Center for more information about the process of reporting and
tracking a claim.
*This article is 100 percent
entertainment. If you have any questions about your GEICO coverage,
please call 1-800-841-0728 or visit geico.com. The Three Stooges® is a
registered trademark of C3 Entertainment, Inc. The Three
Stooges® characters, names, likenesses and all related indicia
are trademarks and property of C3 Entertainment, Inc. © 2010
C3 Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved. www.threestooges.com