Whether you run a fish farm, poultry farm, dairy farm, or even a horse farm taking care of crops and livestock is a huge responsibility, especially when the success of your business and your livelihood depends on them. Though agricultural advancements makes it possible to control factors that affect yield, odds still play a part nonetheless.
Instead of waiting for something big to happen, many farm owners decide to invest in farm and ranch insurance so that they don’t watch helpless when tragedies such as typhoons, drought, and insect swarms strike.
With the goal of making the process of finding the right insurance policy easier for our readers, we went ahead and created this guide to farm insurance. We’ll start by discussing the various forms of farm insurance that are available to you then proceed talking about the average cost of insurance and the best companies to try.
Ranches have all or at least some of these machines - balers, tractors, trucks, shears, grinders, and trailers. Also, let’s not forget the presence of animals such as cows and horses, which leave some defecations all over the place. Mix all of these things together and you have the recipe for a possible disaster.
Horses and cows can hurt people. On the other hand, operators can run someone over with heavy equipment. And for this reason, ranches shouldn’t forget to get general liability insurance.
Ranch liability insurance with general liability coverage pays for the lawsuit and settlement of someone filing a personal injury claim against a ranch. The most common reasons of personal injury lawsuits ranches face are:
Livestock injuring an outsourced technician (kicked by a horse or horned by a cow)
Client/customer slipping and tripping from livestock manure
Injuring someone with ranch equipment due to the negligence of the operator to follow safety protocols
General liability insurance can help because it provides $1 million up to $2 million basic coverage for personal injury claims. A horse or cow attack can result in wounds and broken bones, which require a minimum of $1,000 as compensation. Slips and falls may cause contusions and concussions, which if severe, will require a $200,000 settlement for the victim. Finally, ranch equipment accidents can result in death, and this might result in million-dollar payments to the deceased’s family.
Ranch liability insurance also covers property damage. However, the property damage covered isn’t that of the ranch but of the clients. This insurance policy provides repair and replacements costs of not-so valuable properties - such as phones or laptops up to more valuable properties such as cars.
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State governments impose strict regulations and heavy penalties for violations of such regulations. Inside a ranch are harmful substances that are perilous to nearby communities. For example, animal defecations can cause a plethora of diseases that may escalate to become problematic pandemics and outbreaks. In addition, there are also chemicals that drastically affect the environment by causing soil erosion and river siltation.
When business operations cause damage to the community, a ranch is very lucky to only receive a petition. However, this rarely happens as most people will file a lawsuit. One good example of this is the homeowners of Calistoga Ranch Resort that filed a $100 million lawsuit for a fire break out.
Now, facing a $100 million lawsuit is no laughing matter. A ranch paying such an amount has a succession of negative consequences such as problems in employee payroll, shortage of funds for repair and maintenance, short of funds for livestock feed, etc.
When it comes to ranch businesses, ranch liability insurance with public liability coverage is as important as general liability insurance. This insurance policy helps to take care of lawsuits that homeowner associations and civic groups file. In addition, it will also cover reimbursements for property damage a huge ranch-related accident causes.
Ranches are one of those businesses where there’s a high number of work-related injuries. The most common injuries ranch operators sustain are concussions, contusions, cuts and lacerations, amputations, and many more. Additionally, these result from the following accidents:
Tractor/tractor-trailer/baler run over
Being struck by an object
Livestock attacks
Mishandling of chemicals
There’s no stopping an employee from filing a claim to get compensation after they suffered a work-related injury. An insurance policy that will help to make the cost of employee compensation more manageable is workers comp insurance. This insurance policy will shoulder all the payments for employee hospital bills as well as lost income.
Employee claims can be very costly without workers comp insurance. On average, the cost of employee medical fees within a given year a ranch might have to pay out of its own funds is $62,435.
The NSC provides some interesting data on the cost based on what kind of injury an employee suffered from. Please, take a look at the table below.
Type of Injury | Cost |
---|---|
Contusion/concussion | $31,921 |
Sprain/strain | $31,663 |
Laceration/puncture/rupture | $32,933 |
Infection/inflammation | $36,780 |
Fracture/dislocation | $59,749 |
Amputation | $113,695 |
The figures above clearly prove that compensation for employee injury is very costly. Say if two employees suffered from an accident resulting in severed limbs, then the ranch will have to pay about $200,000 if the employees file a claim. Nonetheless, there’s nothing to worry about if there is workers comp insurance ready because it pays no matter how costly the compensation is. This is the very reason why a ranch shouldn’t miss out on this ranch insurance for employees.
Ranches spend a significant amount of their capital for their building and equipment. And so, when disasters strike and destroy these assets, ranches often experience a huge blow.
Building and equipment repair or replacement is costly. For example, getting a new tractor may cost hundreds or millions depending on whether it's second-hand or brand new.
The same is also true for repairing a destroyed building. The table below outlines the estimated cost:
Total/Original Building Value | Repair Cost | Aggregate Repair Cost in 10 Years |
---|---|---|
$72,000 | $10,800 | $108,000 |
$130,000 | $19,500 | $195,000 |
$234,000 | $35,100 | $351,000 |
$343,000 | $51,450 | $514,500 |
A ranch with no commercial property coverage will surely worry upon seeing the above figures. However, for one which has it, there’s nothing to worry about because the insurance policy provides $60,000 up to $1 million.
Beyond just liability insurance, many farmers and ranchers may wish to ensure that they’re more adequately covered, but packing on various forms of coverage can make your premium pretty expensive. Thankfully, insurance carriers offer a few ways to make sure that your insurance is as affordable as possible.
Business owner policies (BOPs) are just one of these methods, and they combine several forms of insurance coverage that are useful to business owners into one package. This package is discounted compared to the amount that you’d find yourself paying for each form of insurance individually.
This is a way of ensuring that you stick with the insurance company that you’re already purchasing your coverage from. If insurance carriers didn’t offer deals like these, there would be nothing stopping you from going to their competitors and getting better rates for different forms of coverage.
The exact kind of insurance contained in a BOP varies based on how much you’re paying for it and the carrier that you’re getting it from. In the majority of cases, BOPs contain a liability component, either general or public, and a commercial property insurance component that will pay for property damage. Many times Farm business utilize tractors, heavy equipment, skid steers, etc. - so it'd be a smart call for such businesses to get appropriate coverage as well.
The policies that comprise farm and ranch insurance are the same. The difference between the two lies in where the terms apply.
The terms of farm insurance work well if crops are raised and planting equipment is used. In case of natural disasters, this insurance policy reimburses the total projected value of the damaged crops.
On the other hand, the terms of ranch insurance cater to livestock and equipment used to care for livestock. This insurance policy reimburses the total cost of dead livestock when natural disasters happen.
Last but not least, both farm and ranch insurance provide coverage for personal injury claims and employee or client sustains due to slip and fall accidents, equipment, or negligence.
If you’re trying to figure out how much farm and ranch insurance is going to cost you in advance, you may have a bit of a challenge doing so without a quote. The reason why insurance companies tend to insist on the quote process is because insurance is an industry that is entirely based on risk and risks vary from one business to another based on so many factors.
That said, the average farm and ranch insurance cost is $68.33 per month or $820 per year for a standard $1m general liability insurance coverage.
If an insurance company doesn’t know anything about you, then it will be challenging for them to determine how much of a risk they’ll take by insuring you. So what are some of the factors that go into determining how much your farm and ranch insurance is going to cost?
One of the most significant factors that influences the cost of almost all kinds of insurance for ranches and farms is the size of said ranch or farm. If you’re trying to insure a larger farm, then you’ll need to pay more for coverage because that increases the chance of the insurance carrier having to pay out for costs on your behalf.
On the other hand, insurance companies aren’t taking too much of a risk when they insure a small farm because it’s less likely that you’ll file a claim and it’s less likely that they’ll have to pay out a large sum. Here’s a table of the average cost of insurance from some of the best farm and ranch insurance companies:
Company | Cost per month | Cost per year |
---|---|---|
American Farm and Ranch | $61 | $732 |
Cinco | $64 | $768 |
Nationwide | $70 | $840 |
Average Cost | $68.33 | $820 |
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When you’re searching for a farm and ranch insurance policy, you’ll also need to pay close attention to the company that you’re getting your insurance from. Every company will offer a different degree of customer service, claims responsiveness, and each of them will quote you a different price.
American Farm and Ranch Insurance trace their history back to 1905 when the Oklahoma Farmers Union was founded. Over the course of 100 years, this company has specialized in providing Oklahoman farmers with the best possible farm and ranch insurance for the most competitive prices.
AFR is the only of the many farm and ranch insurance companies that offer a wide variety of coverage options for your farm and ranch insurance needs, ranging from dwelling coverage to barns, buildings, and other structures, ranging from dwelling coverage to barns, buildings, and other structures. They also cover loss of livestock, winter perils, and personal property. They even offer discounts for policies having multiple options.
Average price: $61
Best for: Oklahoma farmers and ranchers
Our rating: 4/5
Cinco insurance has been in business for 24 years, and during that time, the company has specialized in working with ranchers and farmers. All of the company’s agents are vetted to ensure that they have enough experience working in both the finance and farming industries so they have the right combination of knowledge.
Cinco has a wide range of policies that can be applied to both hobby and commercial farms, including livestock insurance, coverage for crops, nurseries, and grains, as well as homeowners coverage. They even offer farm renters insurance so that farm owners who rent aren’t left out
Average price: $64
Best for: Rented farms
Our rating: 4/5
Nationwide offers farm and ranch insurance coverage under their AgriChoice, AgriChoice Plus, and CountryChoice programs. To ensure that their agents give you the best possible service, Nationwide ensures that all of their agents who deal with farm clients are certified.
Nationwide offers farm and ranch insurance coverage under their AgriChoice, AgriChoice Plus, and CountryChoice programs. To ensure that their agents give you the best possible service, Nationwide ensures that all of their agents who deal with farm clients are certified.
Average price: $70
Best for: Large farms
Our rating: 4/5
Kasey Arey Insuranker
Policy Type: Business Insurance
Company name: Berkshire Hathaway GUARD Insurance Companies
This company gives you a price that was in place for a year and when you have to use it there is fine print were they can go back and charge you more. Would not recommend them to any one. Crooks
Insuranker
Policy Type: Business Insurance
Company name: Berkshire Hathaway GUARD Insurance Companies
Had general liability and workers comp with amguard. Paid high premiums and yet still got audited every year and had to pay more. Was able to prove less risk the first two audits and disputed price down but none the less had to pay more just so I could renew coverage. Third time the audit ( based on what I paid my premium on ) was ridiculous and tried to prove that there was no increase in risk from what I paid for my premium. However they would not believe it and required I paid full audit amount in order to have redline removed. Basically you do what they say and pay whatever outlandish bill they come up with or they will make sure you can’t run your business anymore. ????
Felicia Broadus Insuranker
Policy Type: Business Insurance
Company name: Berkshire Hathaway GUARD Insurance Companies
Avoid these SCAM ARTISTS! They don’t pay claims!!! Save yourself the trouble and money!
Felicia Broadus Insuranker
Policy Type: Business Insurance
Company name: Berkshire Hathaway GUARD Insurance Companies
They are the worst, my truck was hit in January 23 and the claim adjuster has not been out to this very day! They have every excuse in the book as to why. They have not been to the collision shop. PLEASE AVOID THESE SCAM ARTIST!
Dave Phillips Insuranker
Policy Type: Business Insurance
Company name: CoverWallet Business Insurance
Excellent platform for business insurance quote comparison online