Insurance Drone Operations: 2020 Law and Regulation

Law and regulation of drone operations for insurance companies and other operators is complex and evolving. As permissible drone operations are better defined and proliferate, attendant questions of the rights of people and property subject to drone flights will become more and more of an issue. Formerly prohibited practices are becoming more conditionally permitted, and formerly accepted practices are being subject to more granular review.

Who makes the call of permissible or non-permissible drone operations is not always clear. The federal government in many areas of drone operation preempts state and local laws, but either shares authority or defers to the states in others. States in turn may preempt local drone regulation. Questions of civil liability for drone operations – private citizens alleging actions against private citizens – involve principles that are highly uncertain at present, and attempts to apply traditional notions of tort law and privacy considerations have been highly controversial.

As insurance drone operations “do’s” and “don’ts” develop nationally and locally, this snapshot of rules and predictions of future developments is offered for insurance companies to better understand the terms and conditions in which they may operate drones. These directives can and will change, however, and insurance companies should review all the current requirements for the each of the areas in which they plan to operate.