13-05-2025
The chilling insurance policy more Americans are buying... and what it says about gun violence in the US
More Americans are taking out a drastic insurance policy as gun ownership and stand-your-ground laws continue to spread across the country.
Around two million Americans now have self-defense insurance for incidents where they may shoot or kill another person while being attacked or fearing for their own life.
These policies, which tend to fall between the regulatory cracks, can cover legal fees, provide attorneys or provide bail or the costs of a civil lawsuit brought by victims and their families.
Critics call these businesses providers of 'murder insurance', while others claim it is a natural consequence of increased gun ownership and stand-your-ground laws, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Stand-your-ground laws, though varying in detail between states, argue that an individual has the right to use force to protect themselves against an intruder or to defend their own life.
Policies with companies such as U.S. Concealed Carry Association (USCCA) and their main rival U.S. Law Shield can cover a range of incidents from shootings to threatening another person with a gun, so long as there is a plausible self-defense claim.
There are also upgraded plans that can include grisly details such as crime-scene cleanup costs and cover for minor children, as well as TSA-violation expenses and accidental-discharge costs.
Fees can range between $11 and $59 a month depending on the provider and the level of coverage selected.
For these businesses, the proof of the need for their existence is in how many of their clients have been represented and later exonerated after self-defense shootings.
'There's literally thousands of cases that have gone to trial that we have defended our members and exonerated them from charges,' USCCA's founder and owner Tim Schmidt told The Wall Street Journal.
However, there are limitations to the coverage these policies will provide.
Many policies will not cover shooters who are intoxicated at the time of the incident.
While others will not represent those who have shot a family member.
Self-defense insurance leaders told the Journal that their membership has doubled in the last five years.
The businesses saw a large uptick in members following the protests that followed the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in 2020.
There was a 40 percent rise in pre-purchase background checks for firearms in 2020 compared to the year before.
Membership to such businesses has doubled in the last five years
One business, CCW Safe, said its membership doubled in the last five years and now sits between 100,000 and 150,000 members.
USCCA, which has around 860,000 members, is among the largest in the industry.
As a result of such a tailwind these businesses are now highly profitable.
USCCA is 100 percent owned by Tim Schmidt and his ex-wife, and the pair also own three private jets, the Journal reported.
According to the Journal's analysis, the company's membership revenue last year was around $300 million.
The number of clients who actually end up needing a defense attorney for a self defense shooting are actually very small.
The businesses claim they use profits to put on training classes for their members, advising them on when to use force or not, as well as teaching them about the criminal justice system.
'We're the No. 1 firearms and self-defense training organization in the country,' Schmidt told the Journal.
U.S. Law Shield, which has around 600,000 to 700,000 members, only spent around 15 percent of its revenue on its clients legal expenses in recent years, according to insurance filings.
'The number of people who ended up with charges is minuscule. That's why they made so much money,' former U.S. Law Shield attorney Stanley Marks told the Journal.
'We're very profitable,' president of U.S. Law Shield Kirk Evans admitted.
