(WARNING – THIS POST MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS!)
Every one who had stuck to the end of every Game of Thrones episode is no stranger to the sight of court trials, kings debating on who gets what, servants failing to carry out orders and people getting occasionally stabbed at the heart. But what if business insurance existed in that era? Would it have minimised bloody trials by combat or assassinations—and probably made Westeros and neighbouring continents a more conducive place to do business in?
Brienne of Tarth (Public Liability)
Even if she had sworn her life to serving, Brienne just sucks at taking care of people. She worked under the banners of Renly Baratheon (who died under her watch), Catelyn Stark (who died at the Red Wedding), and Jamie Lannister (who got his hand cut off while in her care). Fortunately for Brienne, she belongs to a noble family, and regardless of her incompetence, her clients had been considerably nice to her. Although she has become duty-bound to an extended service of finding the Stark daughters. A public liability insurance would have covered for the damages she has caused, and most probably eased her out of her self-imposed punishment.
Jorah Mormont (Professional Indemnity Insurance)
Jorah’s true allegiance is baffling, and turncoatism can be a big problem in business. When Robert Baratheon died, Danaerys Targaryen found out that he was a spy for the late king. Despite making it look like he had the best interests of Danaerys in mind, there was still an (unintentional) breach of confidentiality when he told the court about his contract with Baratheon. This resulted to him being relieved from his services in Danaerys’ council, and is now wandering about looking for a new job. Had a professional indemnity insurance cover been in place, all damages would have been settled and the Queen would have taken poor Jorah under her care.
Tyrion Lannister (Directors and Officers Insurance)
Everyone’s beloved Tyrion Lannister would have had a lot to benefit from a Directors & Officers liability insurance—if he’d had one. Tyrion was charged guilty of treason against his own kin when he was wrongfully accused of poisoning King Joffrey to death, and faced a terrible fate in jail. Sitting at the second-highest position in the land as the Hand of the King, a D&O insurance would have protected him from investigations and trials following an alleged wrongful act in his capacity as Hand of the King.
Petyr Baelish or Littlefinger (Cyber Insurance)
Now think about it, Littlefinger’s renowned brothel goes online. There’s a database of all the men and women you can choose from, readily available with one click from your little finger. And Baelish, being the wise man that he is, purchases Cyber Insurance for his business. The Lannisters then hire a seasoned hacker that exposes all of Baelish’s customers’ information through the web. Everyone finds out about almost everyone’s dirty secrets, people including Loras Tyrell, Oberyn Martell, and many more loyal customers. With all the power of the two big houses, littlefinger.com would definitely be closed down if they filed a case. Since Baelish had Cyber Insurance to make sure his business was covered to a T, all charges were covered and littlefinger.com continues its daily operations.
Insurance companies would definitely make a lot of gold in Game of Thrones, and you’d find them right beside the Iron Bank of Braavos. What do you guys think? Which insurance policy would you offer to whom? Share your thoughts.