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Blackjack Should You Buy Insurance

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One seemingly good bet to beginning blackjack players is taking insurance. And a major reason why beginning players are fooled into thinking insurance is a good idea is because dealers ask players beforehand if they want insurance when the opportunity arises. However, this is a very poor wager, and we'll get into the specifics of why after explaining more about this bet.

How Insurance Bets Work

Insurance is one of the many options offered to a blackjack player, but it is an option which is most often exercised incorrectly in live play. Insurance is a side bet which is considered independently of the main wager made by the player. All casinos offer insurance as a standard option. This is true in online casinos that offer blackjack also.

  • Like splitting sevens in blackjack when the dealer has a six showing or doubling on a 10 against a dealer five. The only bet they print right on the blackjack layout, that the dealer always asks if you want, is insurance. Nobody hypes insurance to do you a favor. It's high-profit for the house. Except under certain circumstances.
  • In the case of a player with a blackjack if the player has a blackjack versus an ace, what you can do, there are two ways to do it. Some casinos will actually require you to pay insurance. I believe Atlantic City has that rule where you have to put up the money to get insurance to get your money back.

Blackjack Should You Buy Insurance Coverage

The opportunity for insurance wagers arise when the dealer draws a face-up ace; at this point, the dealer will go around the table and ask everybody if they want to take insurance. The insurance is in case the dealer receives a blackjack, and you put out half of your original bet as the insurance. Assuming the dealer does have a blackjack, you win 2-1 on your insurance wager.

To illustrate how this works, let's say that you make a $10 bet, and the dealer shows an ace. You then take the offered insurance bet by laying another $5 out on the table. The dealer turns over his second card, which is a king, thus giving him a blackjack. In this event, you receive win $5 on your insurance bet ($10 total), but lose $10 since the dealer had a blackjack. So basically, your overall bet was a push, and this doesn't seem like such a bad deal so far.

Now, let us assume that the dealer didn't have a natural blackjack; in this instance, you automatically lose the $5 insurance wager; however, you still have a chance to win the original $10 wager if your hand beats the dealer's.

Why the Insurance Bet is Bad

Consult any source of blackjack strategy and they'll tell you that insurance is bad. And the first thing you have to understand with this concept is exactly what insurance entails. Most players mistakenly assume that insurance is meant to protect their hand in the event that the dealer has a blackjack. But the reality is that insurance is merely a wager on the dealer having a natural blackjack.

Blackjack Should You Buy Insurance For A

The main number you want to concentrate on here is 9:4 odds – or rather, the odds against the dealer having a blackjack when they're showing an ace is 9:4. To break this down further, let's say you make $5 insurance bets 130 times; based on the 9:4 odds, you'd win your bet 40 times for $400 in total winnings ($10 total earnings X 40 bets). On the other hand, you'd lose 90 of these bets for $450 in total losses ($5 total losses X 90 bets). As you can see, this leaves you $50 in the hole, thus making it a bad bet overall.

Blackjack Should You Buy Insurance Without

When playing an Insurance bet, you will definitely lose some money. Online casino south africa real money no deposit. Image: Pixabay

Insurance is a side bet you will find in almost all Blackjack tables. Those operated by real-life dealers are no exception. This optional bet allows you to insure your wager at a certain price. Although the idea itself may seem quite attractive, placing an Insurance bet is considered one of the worst moves you can make in the game of Blackjack. Stay with us to learn more about Blackjack Insurance and whether it is worth it.

How Insurance Bet Works

As we have already mentioned, this is an optional, side bet and to play it you need to wager extra money. Insurance becomes available after the initial cards are dealt and the dealer's face-up card is an Ace. Since the dealer's hand could be a natural blackjack, you are allowed to insure a part of your wager. How does it function? After you see that the dealer has an Ace, you place an Insurance bet which is equal to a half of your main bet. Should the dealer hit a natural, the Insurance bet wins and you get 2:1. However, you lose your Ante bet. On the other hand, if the dealer does not show a blackjack, the Insurance bet loses.

Blackjack Should You Buy Insurance

When playing an Insurance bet, you will definitely lose some money. It can be your main bet when the dealer hits a blackjack or the side bet when the dealer doesn't manage to create a blackjack hand. It is easy to see that you cannot win on both bets. As an Insurance bet pays 2:1, it means that you will win the amount equal to your Ante bet when the dealer has a blackjack. But at the same time, you will lose your main bet, meaning that you will in the end still lose half of your main wager. If you beat the dealer, you will win a payout of 3:2 and lose half of your main bet.

Should You Play Insurance Bet

An Insurance bet should be played only if you are sure that the dealer's hole card is worth 10. You can be sure about it only if you count cards. As you know, it is not a reliable technique when it comes to Live Blackjack. Unlike at brick-and-mortar casinos, at live casinos, online the deck penetration is never deep enough to provide you with a card count you can bank on. You should not go for an Insurance bet especially when you have a 10 or any face card in your hand. Skiatook casino jobs in west virginia.

When you do the math, it is clear that an Insurance bet is really not worth it. Although we have given only two scenarios as an example of playing this side bet, there are other situations as well and none of them provides you with a chance to win more. You can only lose more money. The only situation in which an Insurance bet can be acceptable is when you have been dealt a blackjack and the dealer holds an Ace. By playing the side bet, you practically insure that you will keep your original wager and this is the biggest net gain you can secure. This particularly applies if you play Blackjack at high stakes.

In conclusion, we have to underline that no matter what the dealer's face-up card is, you should stick to your bankroll and do not take unnecessary risks. And playing an Insurance bet is definitely a risky and non-profitable move. It is better to go bust in a single round than lose your money in the long run.





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