At first glance, the question as to whether you need farm insurance or not seems fairly straightforward. If you own a farm, you need farm insurance, right? That’s certainly the easiest way to tell, but farm insurance is applicable to much more than a basic farm operation. What if, for example, you don’t personally farm your land, but you rent a portion of it to someone who does? What if you own a barn, but you don’t use it to house livestock? Is farm insurance still applicable to you?
Today, we’re going to take a look at scenarios in which you might need farm insurance to protect your property and guests without actually owning a fully-functional farm.
1. You’ve got livestock and/or sell produce for profit.
Maybe it’s a small herd of goats for cheesemaking. Perhaps it’s a moderately-sized garden, and you’ve been enjoying selling the extra for profit at local farmers’ markets. Either way, you’re likely going to need some farm liability coverage. This kind of coverage can be tailored to provide protection for you in the event that someone visiting gets injured by one of your animals, or if someone slips on one of the tomatoes that’s rolled off your produce stall. You can even purchase protection for your animals if you’re showing them at a fair or 4-H show.
2. You own a barn.
In this case, it doesn’t matter so much what your barn is used for as much as what the building was intended to be. Even if all your barn does is store equipment that you’re not using, it’s still classified as an agricultural building, which means you may need to expand your coverage into farm insurance if you want to protect your barn from damage by inclement weather or fires.
3. You rent part of your land to another farmer.
You may have no green thumb and you may not even own a hoe, but you might very well rent part of your land to a farmer for a bit of extra income. Even if you never set foot on that portion of land, you still own it, which means you’re still responsible for what happens on it. Farm insurance can help make sure that even if an accident happens or property is damaged on the farm, you’ll have the liability coverage you need to stay protected.
4. You own a tractor or other farm equipment.
Heavy-duty farm equipment, like a tractor, is designed to do a large job quickly and well. They’re also very likely to be expensive to repair if they break down. Barrie farms experience a wide variety of weather throughout the year, which means it’s not unusual for a sudden rainstorm or unexpected snowfall to clog up your workday. Farm insurance will help you bounce back without necessarily having to empty your checkbook to fix your equipment, as you can add an insured peril to your plan to trigger coverage when you need it most.
Let Will Marshall Find the Right Farm Insurance for You
With eleven years spent at the Simcoe District Co-Op, Will Marshall is well-acquainted with both the agricultural industry as a whole and the people who drive it and depend on it. We know exactly what kind of farm insurance would be best suited for your property, and we can help you form a policy with the insurance company that provides it. No matter if you’re a massive, well-established farm or if you’re just beginning your first season, we’ll help find the protection you need to make it a success.
If you’d like to learn more about tractor insurance, Barrie farm insurance, or just request more details about what’s included in a farm insurance policy, give us a call at (705) 726-2551. You can also send us a message online.