Poor Excuse for an Editor’s Note

In case you need to be reminded, the rich aren’t like you and me. I was reacquainted with this fact of life recently while visiting with an insurance company known for its expertise in catering to high-end individuals. While I didn’t need to be again told that there are more and more multi-millionaires every year and I’m not among them, I actually was intrigued to learn that it’s a lot of work and responsibility being rich. This insurer’s experienced observations made me count my modest blessings.

It turns out the rich have a lot to worry about. The rich have huge, high-valued homes that can burn or be robbed and cost millions to repair or replace. Most have more than one mansion and their get-a-ways are situated in risky coastal areas or on foreign soil. They furnish their homes with expensive antiques, designer goods and fine art that must be appraised and protected.

The rich have multiple expensive cars that can be stolen or smashed. They have yachts with crews that veer off course, get caught in storms, and sometimes sink. They play with the latest and best toys and technology. Their closets are filled with designer fashions and furs and those funny shoes that starred on “Sex and the City.”

They take vacations to exotic places where rare diseases are common. They engage in extreme sports where broken bones are considered minor scrapes. They not only jet set around the world but they also own and fly their own planes.

The rich sit on profit and nonprofit boards of directors. They volunteer and raise funds for charities. They rub elbows with politicians, the privileged and the powerful. They are the subjects of tabloids, talk shows, editorials and blackmail.

The rich hire staffs of maids, nannies, landscapers, chauffeurs and bodyguards. They have private tutors, music teachers, therapists, pet sitters, personal trainers and personal shoppers–any one of whom could have a sketchy background.

Most seriously, the rich have kids, spouses and relatives who can be kidnapped and held for ransom.

When Barbara Hutton, granddaughter of F.W. Woolworth and daughter of Franklin Hutton, co-founder of E.F. Hutton, came into her inheritance in 1933, her estimated worth was in excess of $50 million. Legend has it she was once asked why she did not carry insurance for all of her valuable homes, jewels and other treasures. Why pay for insurance, she answered, when she could just buy everything again? When Hutton died, she reportedly had just $3,500 in her bank account.

Maybe the rich aren’t that different after all. Even they need a good independent insurance agent.