Contents(6)
- 凹豆律師-Outdoor Lawyer: A Legal Explainer on Diving
- 1. Operators Are REQUIRED to Purchase "Water Recreation Activity Liability Insurance" for You
- 2. Regardless of Whether the Operator Is at Fault, Customers Can Claim Insurance Benefits Directly
- 3. Operator Didn't Purchase Insurance? This Constitutes a "Violation of a Law Designed to Protect Others" — They Still Owe You the Insurance Payout
- 4. Operator Was Negligent? You Can Also Seek Compensation for Mental Distress and Other Damages Beyond Medical Expenses
- A Note from the Editor:
According to a post shared by a member of the #爆潛公社 (Dive Incident Community), a diver who joined an instructor's Fun Dive trip to the Northeast Coast suffered a foot fracture during the activity. Beyond the immense physical pain, the subsequent surgery and hospitalization costs totaled NT$150,000. What was even more shocking, however, was that the for-profit operator had not purchased the legally required "Water Recreation Activity Liability Insurance."
To promote a better public understanding of water safety and the law — and to help people know exactly what mandatory insurance covers — Attorney Wang Gang of "凹豆律師-Outdoor Lawyer" has written the following article, offering an in-depth legal breakdown. It will help you identify legitimate dive shops, understand operators' mandatory insurance obligations, and know your legal options for seeking compensation if an accident occurs.
Before signing up for any dive trip or course, please verify the following 4 key points:
凹豆律師-Outdoor Lawyer: A Legal Explainer on Diving
I came across this post from #爆潛公社 while scrolling through my phone a few days ago — let me take this opportunity to share some legal basics.
If what's described in the post is accurate, there are a few things to pay close attention to:
1. Operators Are REQUIRED to Purchase "Water Recreation Activity Liability Insurance" for You
Under Article 36 of the #發展觀光條例 (Tourism Development Act), and Articles 3 and 10 of the #水域遊憩活動管理辦法 (Regulations for the Management of Water Recreation Activities), any operator who takes paying customers diving on a for-profit basis is required to purchase "Water Recreation Activity Liability Insurance" for those customers. Not public liability insurance, not any other policy — it must specifically be "Water Recreation Activity Liability Insurance."
2. Regardless of Whether the Operator Is at Fault, Customers Can Claim Insurance Benefits Directly
Under the terms of the "Water Recreation Activity Liability Insurance" policy, any accident that occurs during the activity — including travel to the dive site, the dive activity itself, and the return journey to the operator's premises — entitles the customer to claim insurance benefits directly, whether or not the operator was negligent. In the case described above, the medical expenses could be claimed up to the policy limit of NT$300,000, reimbursed based on actual necessary medical costs incurred.
Note: Subject to the policy's exclusion clauses, coverage does not apply when the operator has violated Articles 8, 13, 19, or 24 of the Regulations for the Management of Water Recreation Activities and such violation caused the accident, in which case the insurer bears no liability. Customers therefore still have an obligation to verify the legality of an operator's activities in advance.
3. Operator Didn't Purchase Insurance? This Constitutes a "Violation of a Law Designed to Protect Others" — They Still Owe You the Insurance Payout
If an operator fails to purchase the required insurance, this constitutes a "violation of a law designed to protect others," resulting in damages to the customer in the form of being unable to claim insurance benefits. In such cases, regardless of whether the operator was negligent in causing the accident, the customer may seek compensation from the operator under Paragraph 2 of Article 184 of the Civil Code for the insurance benefits they would otherwise have received.
4. Operator Was Negligent? You Can Also Seek Compensation for Mental Distress and Other Damages Beyond Medical Expenses
If the operator was negligent in causing the accident, the customer may seek additional compensation beyond the insurance benefits for medical expenses described above. This includes: pain and suffering (mental distress damages), loss of income during incapacitation, and increased out-of-pocket expenses (orthopedic aids, nursing care, transportation to medical appointments, etc.).
A Note from the Editor:
The next time you book a dive activity, be sure to ask the operator for both insurance policies and request proof of coverage in the form of an "insured persons list"!
Special thanks to "琉潛" (Lu Dive) for providing sample policy documents for reference.
Note: Lu Dive is not the operator involved in the incident described above. We sincerely appreciate their kind assistance in supporting this public legal awareness campaign.
※ This article is republished with the author's permission from the 凹豆律師-Outdoor Lawyer Facebook page. Original post: 〈潛水法普文〉.
