The Cigar Insurance Myth

[JohnS]

Below is a fun anecdote initially published in 2019. Brad Paisley recorded a song based on this myth in 1999.

The Cigar Insurance Myth

Date: June 2019 -  Author: Inspector Z

The cigar insurance myth. As a cigar smoker, you probably heard that story more than once. According to the legend, some smart-ass insured his cigars against fire. And after smoking, filed a claim that he lost the cigars due to a series of small fires. And that it backfired. But is it true?

The Origin

The story appeared in a newsgroup alt.smokers.cigars. Those newsgroups were the online chatrooms before social media was invented. In 1996, one of the cigar smokers in that group brought it up. But it wasn’t a new story. In the late 1960s, an identical story was published in a collection of amusing anecdotes. And that story was based on an even older joke, about an accountant who deduced cigarettes from his tax because they were lost by fire.

Jack Nicholson smoking a cigar (unrelated to the article but a cool picture)

Over the years, the myth remained largely the same. A cigar aficionado insured his cigars against fire. After smoking them he claimed them from the insurance company. The insurance company denied his request. The cigar aficionado went to court and won. But the insurance company hit back with an arson claim and won. The cigar aficionado was sentenced to jail and a fine. Details changes, but the moral of the story didn’t.

This story, that has been going around for fifty years, is an urban legend, but undeniably fake. There are no records that a case like this has ever been in court. And even if so, if the court sided with the cigar aficionado, then it would mean they rule it as ‘no fraud’. And that would automatically mean that the arson claim would be overruled.

So next time you hear the cigar insurance myth in a cigar lounge, during a cigar gathering (herf) or anywhere else you know it’s an urban legend. There is no truth in this story. No matter what Brad Paisley sings, nothing like this ever happened.

Source: https://www.cigarinspector.com/cigar-library/the-cigar-insurance-myth/

P.S. Below are the lyrics to Brad Paisley's humorous song!

The Cigar Song

Brad Paisley

Well, I'm a sucker for fine Cuban cigars
The problem is I can't afford 'em
But last year I went and got myself a whole box
And just to be safe I insured 'em

I took out a policy against fire and theft
And then I hurried home
With a 50 cent lighter, I sat on my back steps
And I smoked 'em one by one

Two weeks later, I went to see that insurance man
And I handed in my claim
With a straight face I told him that through a series of small fires
They'd all gone up in flames

They reviewed my case and they had no choice
But to pay me for what I'd done
I took that check and bought a whole new box
And I smoked 'em one by one

Two weeks later, this detective shows up
Tells me that company's pressin' charges
One speedy trial later, they locked me up
On twenty-four separate counts of arson

And now I sit, and I stare at a blank brick wall
Lookin' back on what I've done
To pass the time, I've got some ten-cent cigars
And I smoke 'em one by one
Yeah, I smoke 'em one by one

Written by: Brad Paisley

Album: Original Album Classics

Released: 1999

Lyrics provided by Musixmatch

[Cestis4]

Howl ! This is hilarious.Thank you for posting this. 

[ViscountDick]

Thanks. I saw Brad Paisley live at C2C London last year, this song was part of his set.

[rcarlson]

Huh?  Next you'll tell us that if you swallow gum it won't stay in your stomach for 7 years.  

[Ford2112]

Makes me like Paisley even more! That guy can play a guitar too.