How Bad is Products Liability Insurance Hurting General Aviation Manufacturers?

Currently so many general aviation manufacturersWhen I talked with an aviation Independent
must burden the costs of increased liability fromCommercial Insurance Agent who often calls on
potential lawsuits. Even if an aircraft crash is pilotaviation underwriters for you for quotes on private
error, attorneys usually get involved with the familiesplanes he indicated and stated: "Lance, if you think
of the victims and this triggers a lawsuit. Lawsuits areyour aircraft insurance is high, try the finish products
costly and that means additional staff is needed inliability insurance for the manufacturers." We got to
the legal department of the Aircraft Manufacturertalking and I figure it is $50,000 for a Cessna
and each time the products liability insuranceproducts liability insurance per unit built and $25,000
increases.cost for counsel, legal departments, etc.
If you look at a company like Mooney in FloridaNo wonder China and India think they can build
consider also their dilemma, super safety recordgeneral aviation aircraft cheaper than us? We seem
compared to the "Doctor Killer" Bonanza V-tails or theto be killing our manufacturing sector and this is not
Piper Malibu, with issues of behind power curve torkgood for states like New Mexico and Colorado who
when going from zero to full throttle flipping over. Awould like to see General Aviation Manufacturing in
company like Cessna producing 39,000 C-172s hastheir states and some of the jobs for all these future
the economies of scale advantage, but the legalunder 1 million dollar mini-light weight Biz Jets. And
costs and insurance is still a huge chuck of changewhat about all those jobs in Wichita, KS too?
and the over all cost pie of an individual produced unitConsider all this in 2006.
you see?