Wayne Rooney has become the latest sports star to insure part of his body, this time his hair.
The former Manchester United and England striker, who has had two hair transplants, said his hair was the only part of his body he had ever insured. He did not disclose the sum, the insurer or the terms. Rooney first confirmed a transplant in 2011, at the age of 25.
According to a report from The Sun, Rooney joins a long line of athletes whose body-part policies have made headlines. But the figures attached to those deals are usually reported rather than confirmed, and several began life as marketing campaigns.
David Beckham is reported to have taken out cover worth around £100 million in 2006, protecting his legs, feet and appearance. Goalkeepers Iker Casillas and Manuel Neuer are reported to have insured their hands, with Neuer's cover said to respond only to an injury that ended his professional career.
Other deals were openly promotional. Fernando Alonso's thumbs were insured for a reported £8.5 million in 2012, in a policy arranged and paid for by Ferrari sponsor Santander to promote its own accident and life cover. American football player Troy Polamalu's curls were insured for $1 million in 2010 as part of a shampoo brand's campaign, according to the report.
The serious business sits elsewhere. According to Lloyd's, people outside the industry tend to assume sports insurance is about body parts. In reality it is a specialist personal accident market, in which Lloyd's is a dominant player and policies mainly cover career-ending injuries and temporary disability.
Capacity is a big reason the business ends up in London. Lloyd's says local markets, notably in the US and Australia, often lack the capacity once sums insured reach £5 million to £10 million, at which point risks typically move to Lloyd's.
The cover usually comes in three parts: accidental death, permanent total disablement, which pays out when an injury ends a career, and temporary total disablement, which protects wages during long lay-offs. It is sold to individual players and to clubs. One London market carrier's sports product, for example, caps cover at $12 million for any one person and says career-ending benefits can reach up to five times annual salary.
That is where the gap between headline and reality is clearest. Career-ending cover is defined narrowly, and claims can end up in court.
In Howells v IGI Insurance, a professional footballer's permanent total disablement claim went to the Court of Appeal. The policy defined total disablement as being completely unable to play professionally. Permanent total disablement required that inability to last 12 consecutive months, and the player or club had to refund the money if he later recovered enough to play again.
Terms like these explain why the eye-catching sums in tabloid lists rarely translate into payouts. A thumb, a moustache or a head of hair is a good story. A 12-month disablement test, a medical panel and a refund clause are what actually decide whether a policy pays.
For brokers, the lesson runs the other way too. High-profile clients may ask for headline-friendly cover. The real value lies in placing career-ending and wage protection with the right definitions, sums insured and capacity, which for most elite athletes means the Lloyd's market.
