Pro tip: My drone crashed during a lakefront listing shoot and cost me $400

Happened last Thursday when I was shooting a lakefront property in Clearwater. Breeze was fine on the ground but gusts picked up mid-flight and my Mavic 3 went straight into the water. Lost the drone and the SD card with all the footage. Had to reschedule the shoot and pay $400 for a refurbished replacement. Now I check wind forecasts using UAV Forecast before every exterior shoot. Anyone else lost gear to weather? How do you handle rebates for clients when stuff like this happens?

3 comments

3 Comments

danielowens1d ago

and honestly, that $400 refurb might be the cheapest lesson you get from this. I started keeping a cheap backup drone in my car after a similar wind gust incident, just so I don't have to reschedule and lose the whole day's pay. clients don't care about your equipment problems, they just want their photos on time, so having a spare has saved me more than once.

abbyf791d ago

Ha, a $400 lesson is still cheaper than the one I almost paid when my drone took a nosedive into a pond. Your backup drone idea is genius though, I totally get it. Clients really could not care less about our gear problems, they just want their pictures. I've definitely had to just shrug and refund a deposit a few times, which is way worse than buying a spare. But hey, at least you can laugh about it later, right?

the_cameron1d ago

the real move nobody talks about is getting liability insurance that covers gear, I had a policy that paid out for a drone crash and it was way less than $400 a year. saves you from having to buy a backup or eat the loss if your luck runs out.