Hi folks
I think that insurance, by a manufacturer, is perhaps a scam; I know that there is always a good chance of things going wrong, regardless of how expensive or not the purchase may have been, but whose fault is that?
The solution to this, of course, should not lie in the maker being able to extract more money from the customer via insurance premiums: the solution should be a statutory five year guarantee, valid anywhere that manufacturer has his products on sale.
If that manufacturer cannot face such a guarantee, then I would suggest that he knows that his product is not up to merchantable standards and he should not have it on offer in the market, in any market.
That might cause a slowing down of development - so what? Is your Nikon F5 able to give you better pictures than your original F? I don't think so; I would apply that logic to pretty well all products other than medicine.
But don't hold your collective breath: it will never happen.
Cheers - Rob C (an original 'catharsis ' member )