How has the last year been?

It has certainly been quite a difficult period for farmers over the last nine months or so.

Agri-Insurance is somewhat similar to farming in that the weather risk plays a huge part in our business and we have to plan for the worst case scenarios. In light of the recent storms, Zurich held firm to its commitment to look after farm customers carefully and quickly and this meant putting the farmer first and included arranging interim payments, often less than 24hrs after an event. As a consequence we minimised the interruption in what is already a stressful situation.

Our focus is on putting the farmer first, together with our history of settling over 98% of our farmers’ insurance claims, has contributed to making Zurich the fastest growing farm insurer in Ireland.

Are farmers insuring themselves correctly for such extreme weather events?

I think in the main, farmers are good at recognising what is valuable to them and protecting those assets accordingly. At the same time it might be quite some time since a farmer has reviewed their farm insurance requirements.

I would encourage farmers that might not have undertaken a risk review lately to give us a call. One of our local farm insurance experts would then be able to meet to discuss and perhaps tailor coverage to needs.

What are the biggest costs from storm damage?

Typically the largest losses arise from damage to buildings in terms of severity and quantum.

While some losses are of course completely fortuitous and unpredictable, unfortunately some losses could have been easily avoided through some simple risk management steps.

Are farmers valuing buildings correctly in their farm insurance applications?

We continue to encourage revision of sum insured’s, particularly in an environment where some inflation is occurring in construction costs which we have been now seeing for a while.

It is important that rebuilding costs and property valuations are up-to-date and accurate as most insurance policies contain conditions of average and claims are adjusted proportionally depending on the loss.

Were there instances where farmers were not insured properly?

One area which perhaps has been traditionally overlooked is that of business interruption or loss of income insurance. We are working with dairy farmers to recognise the importance of this coverage. For example, in the event of damage, while the buildings may be covered, it can be extremely costly to keep the dairy production going and most farmers could not afford to lose the value of their milk production, especially if it takes some months to reconstruct the milking parlour units, install machinery and get back up and running at full capacity again – after all a farmer can’t just decide not to milk the cows.

With the Zurich policy a farmer can safeguard their dairy income and protect their cash flow – and it is not as costly as may be thought and is usually just a small additional premium.

Are extreme weather events more likely in the years ahead?

While in Zurich we are supported by significant scientific capability in accessing and predicting weather events, it is hard to predict future climate. However, scientific consensus would suggest that a warming world and a changing climate will lead to changes in extreme weather events and these changes are likely to be negative.

Ireland may face increased and possibly more extreme temperature events, windstorms and rainfall.

Given the uncertainty in modelled output we are unable to say with certainty what will happen but what is certain is that it will be more important to build an agricultural sector that can face the coming challenges head on and with confidence.

Be that by providing insurance against extreme weather events where possible, or by working with communities and government agencies to mitigate impacts where indemnity is not possible.

What can farmers do in terms of health and safety on their own farms to lessen the risks of accidents?

Having a safety statement (or risk assessment if less than three employees) is a minimum legal requirement on all farms, but actively using your safety statement to help reduce risk cannot be underestimated. Also we live in a more litigious society and legal costs just to defend actions can be significant.

Is farm insurance costs rising for farmers?

Unlike other segments of the insurance market, premiums have remained relatively stable over the last number of years. The Zurich philosophy is to remain competitive and consistent in our rates for customers in order to provide farmers a superior farm insurance protection, state-of-the-art risk management and an excellent claims service. I believe our farmer customers value and respect that stability.

We also continue to invest in technology and are the first Irish farm insurer to offer an intuitive easy-to-use mobile app that makes it easier for farmers to buy farm insurance. You can now get a Zurich farm insurance quote from our farm insurance experts at your farm and go on cover immediately.

This fast and efficient service saves valuable time and effort while allowing us to pass on cost savings by way of competitive premiums.