It pains me to write this article but it’s probably more painful if I don’t. It pains me to write this article because of several reasons. One, I sell insurance and this public service announcement may appear self-serving. Secondly, I am the husband of a director of a large camp who pays a substantial amount of money in rent, insurance, and taxes, which again may appear self-serving. Let me be transparent and unequivocal: while I’d love for you to be a client of mine or a parent of my wife’s camp, I’d much prefer  your children to have a safe and FUN camp experience that’s covered by insurance should the need chas v’shalom arise. It also would pain me to NOT write this article, because I imagine if I have some experience and knowledge in this area and I don’t share it, that makes me responsible in some way. There are many issues to think about when operating a backyard camp or sending your child to one. I’ll elaborate on a few that come to mind. One, if a child gets injured in a backyard, it’s likely a homeowners insurance policy will decline such a claim. Since there is no coverage for operating a business out of a home, let alone one that watches a gaggle of children. Two, oftentimes backyard camps will have a “trip” to a neighbor’s pool, 7-11, or to another backyard camp. The neighbor’s homeowners’ policy will also NOT cover an accident at the pool. Nor will your automobile policy cover ferrying children around town for camp trips. Lastly (for the sake of brevity), should a counselor become injured on the job, his/her health insurance could also decline coverage. Since this could be considered a “workplace” accident, it is something workers comp insurance should cover NOT regular health insurance. So, now that you are a little more educated about the behind the scenes operation of a camp that operates out of a rented premises with all required insurance you should also understand, why they charge what they do. I recognize there IS a significant difference in camp tuitions but what you are saving may cost a lot more in the long run. Y.P.  The views expressed in this letter do not necessarily represent those of YWN. Have an opinion you would like to share? Send it to us for review.