As the nation reels from yet another school shooting, calls for gun control or arming more people with guns abound. There are also calls for requiring gun owners to have liability insurance; unfortunately, it is not that easy. No insurance policy is going to provide coverage for intentional acts. Insurance is a transfer of risk, and the risk must be from a fortuitous loss, not a deliberate action. An insured cannot set his house on fire and expect the insurance to cover it, although there are those who try. Such actions are arson and insurance fraud.

 If an insured's gun is stolen, there is coverage in the standard homeowners form for $2,500 for theft of firearms and related equipment. This is physical damage cover for the gun itself, not liability coverage.

 The insured is not liable for the actions of the thief even if the gun can be traced back to the insured. The insured's liability coverage is only for damages for which the insured is legally liable. An insured is not apt to be considered legally liable for the actions of the thief who stole the insured's gun, even if the gun was laying on the dining room table. While the gun is technically insured, the thief who stole it in order to shoot people at a mall is not protected by the gun owner's policy, nor should he be.