BVLOS and Insurance: What Underwriters Ask For

Quick TL;DR

• BVLOS increases insurer scrutiny and cost. Expect specialty endorsements, higher limits, and strict operational requirements.

• Underwriters want proof: pilot experience, maintenance and training programs, detect-and-avoid capability, operations manuals, telemetry, and any FAA waivers or approvals.

• Do the paperwork before you apply. If you try to insure BVLOS after an incident or enforcement action, expect denials, big premium hikes, or refusal to renew.

Executive summary

BVLOS is the business frontier for inspections, delivery, and long-range surveying. It also represents the single biggest shift in underwriting for drone insurers. 

Carriers do not treat BVLOS like a simple add-on. They want a documented, technology-backed safety case: waivers or approvals, proven detect-and-avoid (DAA) systems, robust safety management systems, named or qualified permissive pilots, maintenance logs, and telemetry retention. 

If you do BVLOS and you want a healthy relationship with insurers, build that package first and then go to market. The rest of this article gives a practical checklist underwriters actually ask for, the tradeoffs in policy language, how to price expectations, and sample wording to use with brokers and insurers.

Why BVLOS changes the insurance conversation

Underwriters price risk by exposure and predictability. BVLOS increases both the size of exposure (you may cover more miles and more third parties) and uncertainty (loss events are harder to observe and mitigate). Because of that:

• Insurers treat BVLOS as a separate risk class and often require special endorsements or a bespoke policy.

• Carriers expect formal regulatory compliance such as FAA waivers or operating under Part 91/135 where applicable, and they use that as a baseline for coverage.

• Detect-and-avoid systems and UTM/ADS-B integration are underwriting currency. If you can show validated DAA performance and integration with traffic data, underwriters will consider it favorably.

If you try to treat BVLOS as “just more range,” you will be surprised by both price and paperwork.

The exact checklist underwriters ask for (copy-paste this)

This is the working list insurers and brokers will use to evaluate a BVLOS program. Deliver these documents upfront or you will lose time and quotes.

Operational and regulatory

• FAA approval or waiver details (Part 107 waiver, Part 91 COA, Part 108 authorization, or equivalent). Include application, grant, and operational conditions.

• NOTAM and airspace procedures for routes.

• Local permits or state approvals if applicable.

Safety management & procedures

• Full Operations Manual and Safety Management System (SMS) or equivalent.

• Pilot training records, recency, and minimum flight hours thresholds. Include simulator hours and recurrent training.

• Maintenance program and maintenance logs per aircraft.

Technology & mitigations

• Detect-and-avoid (DAA) system spec sheets, test results, and validation reports. Show detection ranges, false positive rates, and avoidance performance.

• Command and control (C2) redundancy and latency tests.

• Remote ID and telemetry retention policy with hashed raw logs for flights.

• Geofencing and UTM integration description if used.

Data & evidence

• Sample raw telemetry exports and mission logs for representative flights.

• Incident response plan and chain-of-custody procedures for data and damaged aircraft.

• Historical safety metrics: flight hours, sorties, incidents, near-misses, and corrective actions.

Financial & contractual

• Revenue by operation type and exposure mapping (km flown, population density of routes).

• Contracts and client COI templates you must meet.

• Desired limits and deductible structure.

If you cannot provide these, expect a limited quote at best or a refusal.

Read: How FAA Violations Impact Insurance Claims & Premiums

What detect-and-avoid evidence underwriters want

DAA is not a marketing spec sheet. Insurers ask for test evidence and operational integration.

Provide:

• Test protocols and results demonstrating detection of cooperative and non-cooperative traffic at operational altitudes and ranges. Include worst-case performance numbers.

• Integration notes showing how DAA alarms feed into C2 and automated avoidance or human-in-the-loop operations.

• Third-party validation or independent lab tests when available. Insurers prefer objective validation over vendor claims.

• Procedures for degraded DAA modes, lost-link behavior, and safe termination of missions.

If your DAA is unproven or vendor-only claims, expect restrictions: limited altitudes, reduced range, higher deductibles, or conditional endorsements.

Pilot experience and training - the expectations

Underwriters want to see a training regimen and minimum competency thresholds. Typical expectations include:

• Remote Pilot Certificate (Part 107) or equivalent for each PIC.

• Minimum logged flight hours tiered by task complexity (for example: 200 hours for routine BVLOS ops, higher for complex operations). Brokers will set expectations; treat these numbers as negotiable but documentable.

• Evidence of recurrent training, scenario-based checks, and simulator sessions for rare failure modes.

• A record of approved observers or remote visual observers if the operation relies on them.

Paper trail matters. If pilots cannot prove hours and recurrent training, you will pay more.

Insurance products you will see for BVLOS

Expect one or a combination of these structures:

• Specialty BVLOS endorsement attached to a standard drone policy. Adds conditions and higher limits for BVLOS missions.

• Bespoke commercial aviation policy for larger operators, often with bespoke limits, excess layers, and tailored deductibles. Used by fleets and delivery providers.

• Project-specific wrap-up policies for trials or pilots, issued for limited duration with tight covenants and higher price per day. Useful while you prove the program.

Underwriters may also demand risk engineering: site visits, audit rights, and third-party safety reviews before binding. Budget for those costs.

Typical underwriting red flags that kill quotes

• No formal waiver or regulatory permission.

• DAA untested or no independent validation.

• Insufficient C2 redundancy.

• Gaps in telemetry or inability to provide raw logs.

• Inconsistent pilot records or no recurrent training.

• Operating in very dense urban corridors without mitigations.

If a red flag exists, underwriters will either exclude BVLOS coverage, restrict it, or price it very high.

Pricing expectations and structuring limits

BVLOS premiums vary widely by exposure. Expect:

• Noticeably higher premiums than VLOS operations, often multiples of standard rates for comparable fleet size.

• Higher deductibles for hull and higher self-insured retention for liability.

• Requirement for layered coverage or umbrella limits for enterprise deployments.

Practical approach: start with a liability-first policy and obtain hull/DAA endorsements as you prove operations. Brokers often quote liability-only for pre-waiver phases and switch to full BVLOS cover once waivers and tests are in place.

Sample broker request email you can use (copy-paste)

Subject: BVLOS Quote Request - [Company Name] - [City, State]

Hi [Broker Name],

We are seeking BVLOS-capable drone insurance. Summary:

- Fleet: [number] aircraft (list make/model, serials attached).  

- Operations: BVLOS mapping/inspection over [rural/linear infrastructure/urban fringe], average route length [km]. Planned sorties per week: [X].  

- Regulatory status: [waiver granted / waiver pending / Part 91 ops]. Attach waiver docs if granted.  

- Mitigations: DAA system [vendor/model], test report attached; C2 redundancy details attached; telemetry retention policy attached.  

- Pilots: [number] PICs with Part 107 / hours summary attached; recurrent training program attached.  

- Desired coverage: $[X]M liability per occurrence, hull scheduled with agreed-value on selected assets, BVLOS endorsement, deductible $[amount].  

- Attachments: ops manual, SMS, sample telemetry, maintenance logs, DAA test report.

Please provide coverage options, exclusions, inspection/audit requirements, and expected premium ranges.

Thanks,  

[Name / Contact]

Final advice

BVLOS is not a checkbox. It is a program. Underwriters will either insure your program because you have built the processes and technology to reduce unpredictability, or they will treat it like experimental risk and price or exclude it accordingly. 

Build the paper trail, validate your DAA, train pilots, get waivers when required, and then approach brokers with a clean package. If you skip steps, expect denials, higher premiums, or surprise exclusions when a claim happens.

Resources

• FAA BVLOS Fact Sheet and guidance.

• Industry notes on DAA testing and validation.

• Specialty broker and market write-ups on BVLOS underwriting.

Read: Payload & Camera Coverage - How to Insure Expensive Sensors and SSDs

Author

Svetlana - I am a Drone Insurance Writer and Researcher. I write about drone risk management and insurance for US pilots. Not a licensed broker. For policy advices contact a licensed insurance professional.