How likely it is for P4P to crash? Should I get DJI care or not?

[Loz]

What do you mean you are 107?[emoji848]


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'107' Means person is Remote Pilot Certified under the NEW Small UAS Rule (Part 107) which includes all pilot and operating rules, that came into effect on August 29, 2016.

Generally, 107 refers to the USA FAA laws regarding flying drones etc - lots of info, See Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Frequently Asked Questions/Help


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[Loz]

Curious (without judgement) how many 'risk takers' ensure they have PI insurance to cover possible damage to another person in the event of an accident. I'm not claiming high ground here at all, rather, prompting thought on what may be important to protect against..


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[F3honda4me]

'107' Means person is Remote Pilot Certified under the NEW Small UAS Rule (Part 107) which includes all pilot and operating rules, that came into effect on August 29, 2016.

Generally, 107 refers to the USA FAA laws regarding flying drones etc - lots of info, See Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Frequently Asked Questions/Help


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Just to add to that part 107 only applies to commercial operations.

 

[clay77355]

Insurance dude, I bought mine the same day I bought my drone. Especially as a newbie as I am. I got over confident with the eass of flying this thing and thought I'd land it on my porch. It lost gps signal and I put into the house. DJI Care covered it and I had it back in two weeks.


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[wely324]

Curious (without judgement) how many 'risk takers' ensure they have PI insurance to cover possible damage to another person in the event of an accident. I'm not claiming high ground here at all, rather, prompting thought on what may be important to protect against..


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We shouldn't really be flying over people to start with but it is something to think about. You also have to think about damage to not only people but their property as well.

 

[jwmcgrath]

Curious (without judgement) how many 'risk takers' ensure they have PI insurance to cover possible damage to another person in the event of an accident.


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I know for me, when I said "safe, calculated risk taking", I meant flying over water, skimming tree tops...

Risk to the drone, the kind drone insurance covers, not people or property!


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[DroneGoddess]

'107' Means person is Remote Pilot Certified under the NEW Small UAS Rule (Part 107) which includes all pilot and operating rules, that came into effect on August 29, 2016.

Generally, 107 refers to the USA FAA laws regarding flying drones etc - lots of info, See Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Frequently Asked Questions/Help


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Thank you!

 

[hkdman]

I live in Los Angeles as well - PM me if you want to get together and fly sometime. I have met a few cool people on this site - so we are always looking for people to fly with!

 

[Scubamaniac]

How likely you are to crash has more to do with the operator than the drone so the answer will be different for each individual.

Regarding DJI Care, keep in mind that in the unlikely event of a crash you will have spent $250 total in initial cost and replacement fees so if a repair costs $250 you have not saved any money, only broken even. And of course you are out the initial cost even if you never need the service. And if you have an accident where you can't recover the drone, no coverage.

Certainly sometimes DJI Care can end up being a good deal, but statistically on average... probably not for most.

Mine was well worth the money. Would of cost me nearly 900.00 without it, Free shipping both ways too saves another 40 bucks for me.

 

[Russ43Phantom]

Hi and welcome
I'm assuming your question is absolutely serious [emoji848], so the P4P is exceptionally safe and very unlightly to crash, it's just that their pilots sometimes put them in harms way. It's really impossible for us to advise if you will crash, it's very possible for you, as I and many have done, to minimise chance of mishap and have heaps of fun in the process.

Some things to consider to assist you:- (before flying / much)
- put app into beginner mode.
- watch as many beginner / intro training videos you can on YouTube
- understand exactly what and how RTH operates and how to set RTH altitude, along with settings in app.
- start / early flights in safe open area away from people and high objects

Sorry if you are across all of this already, IMHO if you start carefully you should probably not be in any danger of crash or needing DJI care.

In summary put in the effort learn to be safe and you will be. Ask if you need help and best of luck [emoji106][emoji4].





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Excellent advice. I would add the following:
- Your first exercises should be just a forward and backward flight with NO YAW. This gives you a good understanding as to your limits in judging distance when the drone is more than 50 yards away.
- Then fly a box pattern (with no YAW) to get a feel for how the drone handles
- Then, in close range in a large field, fly a forward and backward with YAW so the backward flight has the drone's front facing you. Learn and become comfortable with the Left=Right and Right=Left situation
- Then fly circular or figure 8 patterns to gain more comfort with the joy sticks
- If you are a photographer, I would then use the "Home Lock" mode to get to a point for the photograph and then return. This helps to address the confusion as which way the drone is facing when it is far away. No matter what your YAW is, your drone will come back to you when you pull the right stick backward (in default mode).

Even with this cautious and systematic approach, and even after you have seen on YouTube all the possible ways to crash your drone, I would advise you to take on the insurance. Most drone pilots will say it's not a matter of "if" but of "when" you have your first crash. Give yourself a sense of comfort. Then ... enjoy flying!

 

[wsalopek]

You see this bit of wisdom frequently but it's not true. Real (non-UAV) pilots don't believe it, nor do most passengers, or no one with any sense would ever fly. Besides, not every crash will be benefited by DJI care anyway. As above, it's not cost effective for minor incidents, major incidents where you lose the aircraft aren't covered, and it's only good for one year. There is essentially a window of usability, and to suggest that everyone will experience a crash that falls within this window is just wrong.

Smiller,

Antonio is ABSOLUTELY correct. He said "eventually"...yes...if a person flies a drone long enough, they WILL have an accident. That's 100%, FOR SURE. No human is perfect, and nothing mechanical is faultless. Sooner or later, no matter how careful a person is, the odds WILL catch up with the pilot.

As far as no one ever flying, etc...we all, everyday, do things that can kill us...walk on the side of the road (on in the woods where, say, mountain lions might live)...we drive cars and fly in airplanes, eat food (that might have gone bad), we live in earthquake areas, etc etc, etc...and we all, everyday, take the calculated risk, some higher, some lower, that the benefit of the activity outweighs the risk involved.

--

Bill

 

[Glenn Goodlett]

I live in Los Angeles as well - PM me if you want to get together and fly sometime. I have met a few cool people on this site - so we are always looking for people to fly with!

Finally, the right answer. Good on you!

 

[Erick Erickson]

I bought DJI Care and I'm glad I did. I was flying mine in the woods behind our home and a tree branch fell out of a tree, triggered the sensor, the drone went backwards, hit a tree, then crashed and the motor wouldn't stop. It dragged itself across the ground. The legs were cracked, the gimbal was messed up, and the optical sensors no longer worked. I sent it back via DJI Care and they sent me a replacement.

On something this expensive and with the random chance of accidents, I think it is worth it and I say that as someone who never buys the care plans.

 

[smiller]

Antonio is ABSOLUTELY correct. He said "eventually"...yes...if a person flies a drone long enough, they WILL have an accident. That's 100%, FOR SURE.

If you want to play semantic games then yes, if you fly for an infinite period of time then any non-infintely small chance becomes certain. But even that is totally irrelevant to the point, which is that in order for DJI Care to be of use you don't have an infinite time to crash, you only have a specific window of time, along with other preconditions (the crash must be expensive enough to make the insurance worthwhile yet at the same time you cannot lose the aircraft, etc.) And again, to suggest that a crash meeting all of those requirements is somehow certain is clearly wrong. And the likelihood of crashing 'someday' is equally meaningless with respect to the value of DJI Care if you aren't within the window.

Consider it this way... if a crash meeting all of the requirements and within the coverage window was certain, or even statistically likely over the total population of owners, do you think DJI would offer the coverage?


P. S. I'm not saying that it is foolish to buy DJI Care, only pointing out the objective logic of this type of insurance. If after considering all of this one feels that it is a good investment for them then by all means, go for it. I'm not commenting on what anyone in particular should do, rather only the fallacy of the 'crashing is certain' answer as it relates to DJI Care.

 

[AnchorageAk]

Most people have insurance on their home, car, boat, life, and health. Some even their dog, or cat. Why not your drone?

EDIT: Mine is $22 a year through State Farm. Well worth it for that amount of money. I have seen where others are $35 a year. If it was hundreds of dollars, I doubt I would have it.

 

[KR W]

You will eventually crash (small or big) the question is when and how (pilot or AC problem). If you can afford, get insurance and some peace of mind.

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I totally agree on this.

 

[Skyliner]

I live in Los Angeles too. Just got my new P4P a few days ago. Let's go out flying! I can't seem to find to many places around here to fly. Any suggestions?


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[DroneGoddess]

I live in Los Angeles too. Just got my new P4P a few days ago. Let's go out flying! I can't seem to find to many places around here to fly. Any suggestions?


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I live in Glendale and I usually go to Verdugo Park near Glendale Community College...It has a huge baseball and football field and it is a perfect open space for practicing

 

[hkdman]

I live in Glendale and I usually go to Verdugo Park near Glendale Community College...It has a huge baseball and football field and it is a perfect open space for practicing

Cool - I am going to Vegas this weekend and Cancun the week after - but perhaps in 3 weeks we can get together to fly? I have another person that I met through the forum that is pretty cool - so perhaps we can convince him to join us (as well as anyone else that wants to go!)

BTW - I just received my Mavic Pro today...I am doing the happy dance

 

[DroneGoddess]

have fun in Vegas and Cancun...Unpacking the drone is great fun too...Just don't get tempted to fly it without reading the instructions.