Chriselle 158 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 ...And you get found be ready to crack your wallet. Nozawa Onsen will charge the three boarders that got lost the other day. (See GG's post below for details.) Haven't they been doing this all along though? Get lost...you pay? Link to post Share on other sites
grungy-gonads 54 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Here it is without the click: NAGANO — A ski resort in Nagano Prefecture will ask three snowboarders who became lost and spent Monday night in the mountains near Nozawa Onsen ski resort, to pay for the cost of their rescue. On Monday afternoon, the three snowboarders—a 44-year-old man, his 35-year-old wife and a 38-year-old female acquaintance—ignored signs asking snowboarders to stay on designated courses and became lost, NHK reported. The three were unhurt when they were found on Tuesday morning about one kilometer from the resort. A ski resort official said the trio went under a rope and made their way into an off-limits area. He said the resort has put up many signs warning snowboaders and skiers about the danger of going off designated courses, NHK reported. Since 2010, the village has enforced an ordinance under which any skier or snowboarder who ignores warning signs and gets lost has to pay for the costs of their rescue. Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Sounds perfectly reasonable to me. You think the resort should pay? Link to post Share on other sites
SKI 15 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 That's not news. Problem with newspapers is they need to fill their columns. Any old rubbish will do. Link to post Share on other sites
Chriselle 158 Posted January 4, 2012 Author Share Posted January 4, 2012 No, no....I just assumed this is the way it always was.... Like a coast guard rescue if you were doing something stupid. The news report makes it sound like this a new thing. Link to post Share on other sites
SKI 15 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 I'm pretty sure it is. Why should the resort pay if someone does that? If someone dies etc, I think it gets more complicated certainly in terms of reputation/face whatever, but stuff like the above I can't see why anyone should expect a resort to cough up. Link to post Share on other sites
panhead_pete 27 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Wow 1km away.... Im glad they survived. I would happily pay in those circumstances. Link to post Share on other sites
Chriselle 158 Posted January 4, 2012 Author Share Posted January 4, 2012 I caught a bit of it on the news last night while having a bite to eat at a SA on the Tomei. They dug a snow cave and seemed pretty well prepared for a night in the woods. Link to post Share on other sites
Mick Rich 78 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Yeah, they were lucky! The charging policy seems fair enough to me and I noticed that the same policy was clearly stated in both Japanese and English on the Hakuba piste maps that I used last week. Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 3 people in a snow cave or Igloo would be warmer than on your own. Better chance of survival. Sure, if you get lost and needed rescue, user pay. Might be a good idea to prepare for over night and leave a note ... Link to post Share on other sites
seemore 66 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Sounds pretty cosy to me Wife and a female acquaintance in snow cave If the resort spent the money looking for them all night then yes they should pay. Seemore Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 its always been clearly marked that if you go outwith the ropes and require rescue, then you will have to pay full whack for it. Were they Japanese or Gaij? Who raised the alarm and sparked the search? Link to post Share on other sites
gerard 6 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Sounds like they went South from the top into the abyss, towards some onsen. I'm heading up there to ski on Fri/Sat, so mental note not to do that. Link to post Share on other sites
gozaimaas 61 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 How much does it really cost? Were there heli crews involved? A heap of overtime shifts no doubt. Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Does anyone know who or what triggered the search? It'd be mighty annoying to be away out the back of beyond snow camping, riding and having a whale of a time to run into the Search & Rescue and be given a huge bill because someone saw your car in the carpark overnight and assumed you were lost!! Link to post Share on other sites
nippontiger 8 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 I could imagine something like this running up to the hundreds of thousands of yen. I wonder if its possible to get some sort of liability insurance to cover for this kind of thing in addition to back-country medical cover? Link to post Share on other sites
Chriselle 158 Posted January 4, 2012 Author Share Posted January 4, 2012 Does anyone know who or what triggered the search? It'd be mighty annoying to be away out the back of beyond snow camping, riding and having a whale of a time to run into the Search & Rescue and be given a huge bill because someone saw your car in the carpark overnight and assumed you were lost!! That's what I was thinking when I saw the news story. They looked prepared. I said to my wife..MAYBE, they weren't lost.....Rescue?....we don't need a rescue. Take your bill and stick it! Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 I could imagine something like this running up to the hundreds of thousands of yen. I wonder if its possible to get some sort of liability insurance to cover for this kind of thing in addition to back-country medical cover? I thought that rescue was covered in BC-Insurance policies Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 The question is - do people / can people submit a plan for BC ski/board/shoeing with the ski patrol ot tourist office to let them know. Wouldn´t that help both ways ? Link to post Share on other sites
Memphis Hawk 2 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 wrong thread? Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 NHK news now Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 They were discussing the issue of who should pay? Interviewed Nozzle manager. How they have clear signs. And Nagano-ken prefecture office about climbers. Something about the amount of cash the pref. has to save people who get in trouble being cut. And the pref. bods saying that it is unfair for Nagano to cover lost people search when 80% of the people are from outside Nagano. Sorry didn't quite catch it all properly. Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Saw that. They also discussed rescue insurance, the payout for which is capped at 200 man-yen, even though the cost of rescue could exceed that amount, especially if a helicopter is involved. The payout is capped that low because not that many people sign up for the insurance. Link to post Share on other sites
panhead_pete 27 Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 In my travels over the last few years Im sure I have been a resort gate that detailed the costs of a rescue depending on the number of people involved and the equipment required. i have another PC now so dont have the pic but it was pretty clear what would happen. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 They were discussing the issue of who should pay? Interviewed Nozzle manager. How they have clear signs. And Nagano-ken prefecture office about climbers. Something about the amount of cash the pref. has to save people who get in trouble being cut. And the pref. bods saying that it is unfair for Nagano to cover lost people search when 80% of the people are from outside Nagano. Sorry didn't quite catch it all properly. I didn't see it but you get plenty of (my word would be idiots) taking on the weather, mostly outside winter. The weather forecasts in Japan are pretty good these days, so there's no excuse. The main reason I think people hike up mountains in typhoons is that they want to tick the names off a list. Its like taking an eight hour cold shower on a stairmaster. Link to post Share on other sites
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