Hockey specialty events insurers beware: there is an 11-year-oldringer ready to cash in on the promotional policy youunderwrote—and he may have a score to settle.

According to reports, last Thursday during a charity ice hockeygame in the small town of Faribault, Minn., Nick Smith's name wasrandomly drawn to compete for a $50,000 prize during anintermission.

The contest, which was underwritten by the company Odds On Promotions, isdescribed as the company's “most popular promotion.” The companysays it consists of “randomly selecting a contestant from the crowdto take his or her best shot from the red line (minimum 87 feet). Atemplate will require a near-perfect shot, yet a great prize willreward the future NHL star!”

When the shot was taken from 89 feet away, the three-inch-widepuck slipped right through the three-and-a-half-inch-wide openingin front of the goal.

The only problem? Nick's twin brother Nate was the one who tookthe improbable shot. (See video above.)

Reports note that while Nick was outside the arena, his name wasselected. Rather than waste the opportunity, Nick's fatherreportedly sent down his other twin son, Nate. Nate lined up aperfect shot and the puck went in. However, the boys' father cameclean to promoters the next day, citing, “honesty as the bestpolicy.”

According to Odds On Promotion's web site, premiums for such acontest start at $500, although it's unknown at this point how muchthe planning organization, the Faribault Hockey Association(FHA), paid for the policy.

When asked about the exact wording of the policy, Vance Vinar,Jr., the fundraising chair for FHA, seemed to indicate that policylanguage would preclude payment, although he would not state withcertainty.

“What if the policy said in black and white that the personwhose name was drawn must be the one taking the shot? Would theinsurer have to pay?” asked Vinar when questioned about thespecific policy language. All other questions were referred to theorganization's attorney.

Odds On Promotions responded to a tweet for more policyinformation by saying, “[The] policy is confidential between theclient and insurer. Claims department is still investigating thismatter.”

If what Vinar states is true, odds are low the claim will bepaid, says coverage specialist Diana Reitz, editorial director forFC&S,a service that provides insurance coverage guidance.

“Insurance policies are contracts, and coverage is triggeredbased on how the contract is written,” she says. “We may believe—orperhaps even hope—that Odds On Promotions will pay the twinsbecause it just seems like the right thing to do. But the realityis that, if the policy is written so that the person whose name isdrawn must take the shot, any payment would be an accommodation byOdds On Promotions. And what are the odds of that?”

Given how much publicity was generated from the event and thestatements by the parents that it would go towards their kids'education as well as toward helping their current school, it'sgoing to be a difficult decision to make.