When you’re playing table games at a casino or online, chances to land some winnings if your opponent gets an ideal result are rare. A 7-card straight flush in Pai Gow for the dealer, for example, almost always means that your wager is lost.
In blackjack, however, you might be able to benefit from the existence of blackjack insurance. People who play blackjack games online will frequently encounter this option.
This side bet gives players a chance to snag some winnings if the dealer accomplishes the game’s objective precisely. Not all blackjack games offer the wager, but there are some common rules for when it’s best to stake this bet.
What Is Insurance In Blackjack?
Novice blackjack players will have two common questions regarding insurance. Those are what is insurance in blackjack and is this blackjack side bet worth part of your bankroll?
As the name suggests, this wager ensures your interest in the game against the dealer hitting blackjack. You win your insurance bet if the dealer’s hand totals exactly 21.
You cannot place this bet alone in the vast majority of blackjack games. In almost all cases, insurance is a side bet that accompanies your initial wager.
Players who are inexperienced with these situations should understand the procedures. It’s important to know how to do so before placing your first insurance bet in blackjack.
How Does Insurance Work in Blackjack?
At most blackjack tables inside physical casinos, there will be a special spot on the table where you will place your chips if you want to buy insurance. In most cases, that will be all you need to do to place the bet.
For online blackjack, there is a special insurance button you can click on or tap when the opportunity arises. Minimums and payouts for this bet will vary depending on the blackjack variant you are playing.
In most versions of blackjack, the opportunity to place this bet comes when the dealer reveals their first card. If that card sets them up to hit 21 exactly, you should consider insurance.
If the dealer completes the blackjack, you win your insurance bet, although you’ll probably lose your initial wager. Depending on how much you wagered on each bet, you will, at worst, recoup some of your losses with a winning insurance bet.
A common question from inexperienced players is whether insurance matters if they hit blackjack themselves. In many games, you get a payout if you hit blackjack, regardless of what the dealer ends up with, so there’s no need to place an insurance bet in that instance.
Insurance is a pretty straightforward wager, as only the dealer hitting 21 exactly makes for a win. Players should practice good blackjack bankroll management in these situations, especially in anticipation of possibly losing the insurance bet.
What if the Dealer Doesn’t Have Blackjack?
A crucial part of understanding how insurance works in blackjack includes understanding that there is risk involved. If you place an insurance wager and the dealer doesn’t reveal 21 exactly, you lose your insurance bet.
Depending on the value of the cards the dealer holds and what you have in your hand, you might lose both your insurance bet and your buy-in on the same hand. This is why responsible gambling is so crucial to any discussion of blackjack insurance.
Any insurance wagers as you play blackjack should allow you to stay within your limits and be part of a comprehensive gambling bankroll plan. You should budget for these opportunities before you start playing.
A good blackjack betting strategy lets you react to the gameplay without exceeding your limits. Such plans take into account the reward as well as the risk of insurance.
Benefits of Insurance
The biggest benefit of insurance is that it allows you to turn a potential lost hand into a win. In most games, it’s an automatic win for the house if the dealer hits 21, so you can potentially cover your loss if you buy insurance and you also get an adequate payout.
Some blackjack players will treat insurance as a hedge, too. In most versions of blackjack, you can buy insurance and still play your hand to win should the dealer not hit 21.
You might also have the option to buy insurance and surrender your blackjack hand in some variants. This is the ultimate defensive play for when you believe the dealer will hit blackjack in the games that allow for it.
It’s important to note the rules of each game regarding insurance for specifics like whether or not insurance is even included in the game, and when you can buy it. Rule changes in blackjack can alter when it’s to your advantage to buy insurance as well.
Should You Take Insurance?
In standard games of blackjack, the math of whether it makes sense to buy blackjack insurance depends on the cards you’re holding, other players’ cards that are showing, and what the dealer has revealed. While that might sound complicated to newer players, a little experience makes it easier.
Suppose you’re holding a hard 18, and the other players’ cards that you can see on the table are mostly low. Then, the dealer turns over an ace as their first card.
You know that the dealer now just needs a 10 or a face card to hit a natural. You also know that hitting for you is risky because you’re likely to bust.
Because the other cards you can see are low, the chances of the dealer getting the 10 or face card they need are better than they would be if the other players were showing 10s or face cards themselves. In this instance, the math says you should at least consider buying insurance if it is available but you might want to be conservative with this side bet because holding a hard 18 gives you a good chance at winning your original bet if the dealer does not hit blackjack.
If you bet too much on the insurance wager, the dealer doesn’t hit blackjack, and you do win holding 18, you detract from your winnings to a great extent with your lost blackjack insurance bet if you wager too much there. This is just one possible scenario but it shows you how you need to consider all the outcomes, especially in games where the rules are different from traditional setups like Multi-Hand Blackjack Surrender.
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