What is Farm Insurance?
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Farm and ranch insurance is a hybrid form of coverage meant to protect you both personally and commercially. Like a standard homeowners policy, farm insurance will cover your home, possessions and personal liability. Beyond that, it also includes coverage for your machinery and livestock, and coverage can also be purchased for your farm vehicles, crops, and animal mortality, among other coverages available.
Farm and ranch insurance is usually a highly customized policy: you start with basic barebones coverage, then tack on additional options based on the needs of your home and business. Because each farm or ranch is unique, we will often conduct a site visit and/or ask for photos to make sure your property is fully covered.
Should you get farm or ranch insurance?
In order to figure out whether farm or ranch insurance is right for you, we suggest you consider three factors that can impact your insurance needs:
Structures: If you have secondary structures on your land such as a barn or stable, then you likely need a farm insurance policy. Most buildings that are used for an agricultural function need specific coverage from a farm policy. This can apply to buildings that you have repurposed for agricultural use.
Livestock: If you keep animals that you rely on to generate significant income, then a standard home insurance policy may not provide enough "incidental income" coverage to protect your interest in those animals. Consider the difference between keeping a few hens in your backyard and caring for cows at a dairy farm. Farm insurance is designed to protect livestock in the latter case.
Employees: If anyone works for you on the property, you'll need farm insurance that provides coverage for potential liability situations and workers compensation claims. In Connecticut, you are required to have a workers comp policy in place for any employees.
Farm and ranch insurance is usually a highly customized policy: you start with basic barebones coverage, then tack on additional options based on the needs of your home and business. Because each farm or ranch is unique, we will often conduct a site visit and/or ask for photos to make sure your property is fully covered.
Should you get farm or ranch insurance?
In order to figure out whether farm or ranch insurance is right for you, we suggest you consider three factors that can impact your insurance needs:
Structures: If you have secondary structures on your land such as a barn or stable, then you likely need a farm insurance policy. Most buildings that are used for an agricultural function need specific coverage from a farm policy. This can apply to buildings that you have repurposed for agricultural use.
Livestock: If you keep animals that you rely on to generate significant income, then a standard home insurance policy may not provide enough "incidental income" coverage to protect your interest in those animals. Consider the difference between keeping a few hens in your backyard and caring for cows at a dairy farm. Farm insurance is designed to protect livestock in the latter case.
Employees: If anyone works for you on the property, you'll need farm insurance that provides coverage for potential liability situations and workers compensation claims. In Connecticut, you are required to have a workers comp policy in place for any employees.