If you have been watching primetime television lately, you have probably seen a bunch of commercials for Nationwide insurance. And, while Peyton Manning’s “Chicken parm, you taste so good” will be the one that is stuck in your head forever and always, it’s this spot that got our attention:
Yes, at the 13 second mark, there is a drone unceremoniously dropping a (broken) package on Joe Nationwide’s doorstep.
Now the message of this ad is obviously, “In the impersonal world of customer service, Nationwide can provide you with a personal touch,” and has nothing to do with drones specifically.
However, the fact that this clip made it into the commercial is important because it means the folks over at Nationwide have drones on the mind.
We have written extensively about the evolution and availability of drone insurance for operators and aircraft but this commercial sparked an interesting conversation in our office: what about insurance to protect you and your home from drones?
Among their other services, Nationwide offers auto, life, homeowners, renters, pet, and even farm and wedding insurance.
It seems fairly clear Amazon (or Walmart) will be on the hook for guaranteeing your packages arrive at your home undamaged, but could this ad signal an awareness among insurance companies that drone related incidents could (and probably should) be included in certain policies?
It could be that the drone clip is meant to be a simple over exaggeration of Nationwide’s message, but every other scenario they present in this ad is extremely realistic (except for your insurance agent being on the spot and fully cooperative when you have an accident but then, I don’t have Nationwide so maybe I am mistaken?) and drone delivery is going to be very real, very soon.
That might be alarming to some and, if you count yourself among those who don’t want a drone delivering your makeup and vitamins, there are plenty of anti-drone technologies in development.
But, if you want a quicker, cheaper, and less invasive way of feeling protected from a wayward UAV, maybe you should ask your insurance company if you are covered for drone crashes.
Alan is serial entrepreneur, active angel investor, and a drone enthusiast. He co-founded DRONELIFE.com to address the emerging commercial market for drones and drone technology. Prior to DRONELIFE.com, Alan co-founded Where.com, ThinkingScreen Media, and Nurse.com. Recently, Alan has co-founded Crowditz.com, a leader in Equity Crowdfunding Data, Analytics, and Insights. Alan can be reached at alan(at)dronelife.com