Hapless Skiers' Bizarre Insurance Claims

Updated: 8:35pm UK, Sunday 23 February 2003

Being attacked by a mountain goat and being stabbed with a ski pole are just two of the bizarre insurance claims made by hapless British skiers. In other cases a skier was hit by a snow plough on the piste, and another was hit by a patrol unit on its way to a rescue.

AXA PPP healthcare has compiled its 10 current most unusual skiing insurance claims - and they show that some calamities are far from predictable.

Among those cases mentioned, one skier took off his gloves and grasped a ski lift pole with his bare hand.

It became stuck to the freezing pole - and he had to call out the rescue services to free him.

One learner skier made a claim after he hit an icy patch, leaned very heavily on his ski pole - and as a result stabbed himself with it.

A snowboarder claimed he was attacked by a stray mountain goat while practising his jumps, and a snowball fight that got out of hand left one skier unconscious after he was hit on the side of the head.

One skier on her first day on the piste did not even make it as far as the ski lift.

She slipped on ice and broke a wrist only metres from her hotel as she was going off for the first run of her holiday.

Another skier made a claim after being hit by a ski pole someone dropped from a chair lift as it was passing overhead.

David Battle, head of underwriting for AXA PPP healthcare, said: "This has been a bumper European ski season and it stands to reason that more skiers leads to more bizarre claims."