Blackjack Insurance Bet

December 13, 2009 | Article Category: Blackjack

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A blackjack insurance bet is a side bet in blackjack. A side bet can only be made during play after the game is in progress, and certain requirements have been fulfilled.

The blackjack insurance bet is offered when the dealer shows an Ace for their first card, which is played face up. Blackjack players are then given the option to place a bet on whether the dealer is likely to reach a value of 21 when they are dealt their second card. The bet is placed if the player chooses to do so, which is a judgment they are likely to make based on their own cards and what their current bet value is. The blackjack insurance bet is offered after players have received two cards, and the dealer has only received their first card. If the dealer does obtain a blackjack, the insurance bet is won, and if the dealer does not obtain a blackjack, the bet is lost, and the player simply plays out their original bet as they usually would.

The player may take an insurance bet if they wish to do so when the circumstances allow it, but should note that the insurance bet also comes with certain betting limitations. The total amount that the player is allowed to bet on the insurance bet, should they wish to take the opportunity to use it, is equal to half of their original bet in the blackjack hand that is being played. The insurance bet is paid out at odds of two to one (2:1). This bet is only paid out when, and if, the dealer turned up the required card to help them reach a total of 21, a blackjack hand.

The odds of 2:1 mean that the player who has taken the insurance bet, upon winning it, will receive an amount that is equal to their original bet. This means that the player will lose their original bet since the dealer has won the hand, and they will come out winning the amount they lost from their initial bet, which puts them back to zero as far as that hand is concerned.

While a regular game of blackjack offers some of the best odds that are available in both land-based casinos and in online casinos, the side bets do not always offer the same kind of return. In the case of this side bet, the insurance bet, the odds are not in the player’s best interest.

As with insurance that people take for loss of property, the point of insurance is not to make a profit, but to equalize things should any losses be experienced.