Lloyd’s Insures Famous Santa’s Beard

Lloyd’s may have become a lot more focused on technology, underwriting discipline and the bottom line in recent years, but that doesn’t mean it’s been neglecting its tradition of writing innovative and sometimes even bizarre coverage. Movie star body parts and a Frenchman’s cross channel trip in a bathtub come to mind.

So, in keeping with the Christmas Season, the Lloyd’s web site (www.lloyds.com) has given its devotees a little holiday cheer in the form of an article on Brady White, a high profile Santa Claus. Lloyd’s describes him as “an actor turned professional Santa who visits the likes of Pamela Anderson and Rene Russo and is the face of Father Christmas for Macy’s department store in New York.” White, known as “Santa to the Stars,” has had his whiskers protected by Lloyd’s for a decade.

“There is no doubt that there could only be one place where Father Christmas could have his beard insured and that was Lloyd’s,” said the bulletin. “All sorts of things can happen to Santa’s beard and I wanted to know that it was protected. Children can be a little rough so it gets tugged and pulled a lot, and then there is the soot and the danger of being singed when I head down the chimneys,” White told Lloyd’s.

“Santa” White currently lives in Rhode Island. His big break came in Southern California, however, when as an out of work actor, he applied for a job as Santa at the Beverly Hills Mall. The rest, as they say in Hollywood, is history. Voted “Best Santa” in a local poll, due in large part to his having a real long white beard, he’s gone on to build up an impressive client list. In addition to Pamela and Renée, his Christmas Day calendar also includes visits to the homes of Kirstie Alley, Zsa Zsa Gabor and other famous names.

Lest one lose site of the insurance aspects involved, Lloyd’s turned to underwriter Jonathan Thomas, who, although not the man behind this risk, was once approached with a similar issue. “Brady White’s needs are not dissimilar to the entertainer whose chest hair I offered to cover a few years ago,” he observed. “A natural growth white beard is a valuable business asset to a highly specialized performer like Brady and thus it is exactly the sort of service industry asset protection that Lloyd’s specializes in.

“Unlike most insurance companies, our Lloyd’s policy would not expect Brady to make do with a ‘stick-on’ if he permanently lost his facial hair through an accident during the policy period. With his Hollywood clientele it is unlikely that a fake beard could fool children accustomed to seeing their parents transformed into all manner of characters on the silver screen,” Thomas added.

Source: Lloyd’s