Another issue is soot from the chimney. We all know that Santa is overweight, nay even obese, and sliding down the chimney smoothly becomes more difficult as his body mass increases. Therefore, soot residue from where he has been in the house–where he sat, where he walked–may build up. Again, being in a hurry, Santa has no time to magically clean the house.

While it is natural to think that the same rationale applies here as it did in the case of the cocoa stains, soot is considered a pollutant. In order for damage from a pollutant to be covered, it must be caused by a coverage C peril. While fire is a named peril and the fire in the fireplace caused the soot, that was a friendly fire, and the resultant soot would not be covered. As mentioned previously, there is no named peril for sloppy elves, so there is no coverage if Santa leaves soot all over the house during his visit.

An outdoor hazard exists to the insured's bushes and trees if Santa falls off the roof. Unfortunately damage to trees, shrubs, and plants are named perils, but falling elves is not a named peril. However, if the sleigh clips a tree there is coverage, because vehicles not owned or operated by a resident of the “residence premises” are covered. Remember that no more than $500 is paid for any one tree, shrub, or plant, though.

Outdoor roof lights also pose a hazard; too many lights on the roof could break under the weight of Santa's sleigh, and the broken glass could injure the reindeer. The landing of the reindeer on the roof could also loosen or knock off shingles, damaging the roof.

However fear not, for reindeer are Santa's property, therefore coverage exists for damage to property of others with limits of $1,000. Finding an emergency vet to treat the reindeer could be an issue, particularly on Christmas Eve, so we recommend taking it easy on lights on the roof itself.

The damage to the roof structure is covered because there is no exclusion for damage caused by reindeer on the roof. Subrogating against Santa might put the carrier on Santa's naughty list, but one would assume that Santa, once contacted, would readily acknowledge his responsibility in the damage and handle the situation.

So, while during the holidays people give even less thought to their insurance coverage than normal, there are plenty of seasonal hazards that exist. We here at FC&S hope everyone is on Santa's nice list and that none of the possible accidents listed here occur at their residence premises. Happy holidays to one and all.

Christine G. Barlow, CPCU is an assistant editor with FC&S. She has an extensive background in insurance underwriting. She may be reached at [email protected].