Virtual reality headsets are reportedly one of the leading causes of a 31% spike in insurance claims last year. According to a new report, the increase in popularity of VR headsets and games has resulted in many people damaging everything from their furniture to themselves. The trend has been on a steady increase for the past few years, and experts are already seeing more cases come in after the 2021 holiday season.
How VR injuries have caused an insurance claims increase
Much like the rise of motion controller consoles like the Wii and PS Move before it, many of the accidents are a result of people not paying attention to their environment. According to The Guardian, there has been a total 68% increase in VR-related accidents in the U.K. since 2016 and a 31% increase in 2021 alone. Many of these insurance claims involved the destruction of home contents. In other words, people are breaking things in their houses such as furniture, electronics, and other valuables.
On average, VR-related insurance claims cost approximately £650 GBP. One such example involved two designer figurines. In another example, a man accidentally threw his controller at his TV when a zombie scared him in-game. In fact, televisions were also one of the most frequent casualties. There are plenty of other examples online, so much so that there is an entire subreddit dedicated to videos of people hurting themselves or others with VR headsets.
Given that Sony’s recently-announced PSVR 2 will be featuring even higher definition graphics and “immersive” capabilities than before, it’s not likely that this will change any time soon. The only way to avoid it, one insurance spokesperson said, is to be mindful of your surroundings whenever you play VR games. Go figure!
In other news, the Babylon’s Fall demo is heading to PS4 and PS5 later this month. Recent rumors also indicate that a remake of the popular horror game Until Dawn is currently in the works.
