AOPA Legal Services plan?

Opinions are like... well, yeah... but I'm still asking.

I've been an AOPA member for several years and I've had the legal services plan for about the last 3 years. Recently I've heard commentary from quite a few pilots who have used it and say that it's not worth the glossy ad paper it's printed on and they have dropped it.

Opinions/experiences?

airguy said:

Opinions are like... well, yeah... but I'm still asking.

I've been an AOPA member for several years and I've had the legal services plan for about the last 3 years. Recently I've heard commentary from quite a few pilots who have used it and say that it's not worth the glossy ad paper it's printed on and they have dropped it.

Opinions/experiences?

Click to expand...

When I was selling my Cherokee, I solicitated some advice from an AOPA Legal representative, which also happens to be the husband of my insurance agent. He basically told me that it got me thirty minutes of consultative advice.

This caused confusion on my part because the ads imply more services. Since I stopped flying for awhile after the sale, I dropped the legal service. I haven't bothered to validated his comments or renew the service either.

It did come across as the lawyers having one view of the offering and AOPA selling something else. Who has the most accurate view, I can't say.

bob

FWIW, some years ago, when working on a partnership agreement, AOPA pointed me to an excellent local aviation attorney--that I don't think I would have discovered otherwise. He said that the AOPA plan reduced his bill--I don't recall specifically how much--but it seemed reasonable at the time. He also seemed to make me a priority because of my membership in the plan.

However, I think the real test would come if you were charged with a violation--and your license was at stake.

Is the plan worth the yearly fee? I've been wondering the same thing.

Look at the link below for a 2 page .pdf file that explains what it does, what it covers, and what it pays for.

http://www.aopa.org/info/certified/lsp_certificate.pdf

I have used it in the past and been happy with the service.

Worth it to me.

I have an ATP and we don't have a union where I work. It has saved me twice in 13 years. For me, it is a safety net in professional flying. Have no input on the ownership side.
Hope that helps.

Worth it

I used the legal service plan several years ago following an off field landing. AOPA was helpful finding a good local attorney. The attorney was instrumental in fending off an overzealous, dishonest FAA employee. The plan covered the cost of the attorney. I renew the plan every year.