Insurance cost shuts down teen entrepreneur

[Kat Kanning]

Insurance cost shuts down teen entrepreneur
Innovative fair booth closed due to inability to pay $5,000 liability payment
Posted: August 9, 2005
1:00 a.m. Eastern
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=45669

? 2005 WorldNetDaily.com

A teenage entrepreneur with a popular product to sell was forced to shut down his booth at a state fair because he was unable to pay the required $5,000 liability payment.

Ben Bustard, 17, had set up a booth at the Bangor, Maine, State Fair to sell his homemade "Marshmallow Shooters" ? a toy made of PCV piping that shoots out mini marshmallows, reported the Bangor Daily News.

Bustard, from Bucksport, Maine, initially was told he needed $100 for $1 million worth of liability insurance ? but things quickly changed. Fair officials allowed him to sell his product on the first day of the event while he got the insurance issue settled, so he set up his booth and sold 70 of his Marshmallow Shooters, which go for $9.95 each.

According to the local paper, after failing to get insurance through a rider on the city's policy, and then finding out his business could not be insured through his parents' homeowner policy, Bustard was faced with either paying a $5,000 premium for his own policy or having to close his booth. He chose the cheaper option.

"As a high school kid, I can't afford a $5,000 premium," he told the Daily News last week. "It's frustrating because it's a product that I know sells really well."

Bustard's father, Ken Bustard, says the insurance cost was aggravated by the type of device his son was selling. Ben came across the shooter design on the Internet and, after building one, decided it would be a popular toy to sell, his father said.

"The challenge is that it is not an established product," Ken Bustard is quoted as saying. "The insurance thing made the whole thing impractical."

Ben invested $2,000 in supplies and had hoped to gross $5,000 over the nine-day course of the fair.

The young businessman says he plans to sell his inventory by word of mouth as he researches other insurance options and looks into other fairs at which to sell his product.

[tracysaboe]

Not sure how wrong this is.

He's a vendor, and in order to be a vendor at the fair, he needs to follow the rules the owner of the fair has laid out.

Unfortunitly, the owner of the fair is government?

Is that a fair thing to say?

Other fairs might not require as much insurence. Or he might be able to sell them, word of mouth from his home w/out needing any.

I hope he gets this worked out.

TRacy

[Kat Kanning]

I believe the business insurance is mandated by the government.

[mvpel]

As soon as the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms act passes, he should be immune from liability as long as he provides a trigger lock with his marshmallow shooters.

[Michael Fisher]

...after failing to get insurance through a rider on the city's policy, and then finding out his business could not be insured through his parents' homeowner policy, Bustard was faced with either paying a $5,000 premium for his own policy or having to close his booth.

The statement "Bustard was faced with either..." is not true. ? ?He had other options.

Why didn't he call a company that sells business insurance? ?That's how almost all businesses are insured as far as I know. ?$200-400 per year isn't that much to pay.

[Lloyd Danforth]

Poor Bastard!  I mean Bustard.

[Michael Fisher]

Poor Bastard!? I mean Bustard.

ROFL!

[Kat Kanning]

As soon as the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms act passes, he should be immune from liability as long as he provides a trigger lock with his marshmallow shooters.

LOL!

[Russell Kanning]

.... provides a trigger lock with his marshmallow shooters.

LOL!

how about safety training and waiting periods? .... were these fully or semi-automatic weapons?

[Lloyd Danforth]

Marshmellows! Mmmmmmmm....shoot me in the mouth!

[Kat Kanning]

Maybe he should sell them in conjunction with a super soaker filled with hot cocoa.  Then you could get both

[tracysaboe]

I believe the business insurance is mandated by the government.

OK then that's BAD.

Tracy

[Lloyd Danforth]

Maybe he should sell them in conjunction with a super soaker filled with hot cocoa.? Then you could get both

SWEET!

[Pat K]

 Sure it's all fun and games till some one goo's up an eye.

[Lloyd Danforth]

Safety Glasses!  Duh!