How Does Insurance Work on a Blackjack Table?

Blackjack is a popular card game that has been played in casinos for many years. One of the most confusing aspects of blackjack for new players is insurance. In this article, we will explore how insurance works on a blackjack table.

Firstly, it’s important to understand that insurance is a side bet that you can place when the dealer’s up-card is an Ace. The bet is placed separately from your original bet and is worth half of your original wager. If the dealer has a blackjack, your insurance bet pays out at odds of 2:1, meaning that you will receive double your initial wager.

However, if the dealer does not have a blackjack, you lose your insurance bet but can still win or lose on your original wager. This means that if you have a winning hand and the dealer does not have a blackjack, you will still win even though you lost your insurance bet.

It’s also important to note that taking insurance is generally considered to be a bad move for players as it increases the house edge. The house edge refers to the percentage of each bet that the casino expects to keep over time. When players take insurance, they are essentially giving away money to the casino.

To understand why taking insurance increases the house edge, we need to look at some statistics. There are 13 different cards in each suit in a standard deck of cards, and four suits in total. This means that there are 52 cards in total with 16 cards worth 10 points (10s, Jacks, Queens and Kings) and 36 cards worth other values.

When an Ace appears as the dealer’s up-card, there are only nine other cards left in the deck which can give them a blackjack (the four ten-point cards in each suit). This means that there is only around a 30% chance of the dealer having a blackjack.

Therefore, taking insurance when there is less than a 30% chance of the dealer having a blackjack is not a statistically sound decision. In fact, taking insurance should only be done when the true count (the running count divided by the number of decks remaining in the shoe) is positive.

In conclusion, insurance is a side bet that can be placed when the dealer’s up-card is an Ace. If the dealer has a blackjack, the insurance bet pays out at odds of 2:1.

However, taking insurance generally increases the house edge and should only be done in certain situations. When playing blackjack, it’s important to understand how insurance works so that you can make informed decisions at the table and improve your chances of winning.