Quick links

For our most competitive rates, bundle home and auto insurance.

Quick links

Save faster and tax-free with a First Home Savings Account (FHSA)

Quick links

For convenient access to group benefits, download our Benefits Now mobile app in the App Store or get it on Google Play.

Quick links

Start and track your claims any time, anywhere with an online account.

Quick links

Download our 2023 integrated Annual Report

Different insurance for different farms

The Co-operators started out as a group of concerned farmers trying to protect each other. Farms need to minimize risk to enjoy good profits, and no one understands that better than farmers themselves.

We’ve put together five examples of different farms, the claims they may have, and recommendations for the kind of insurance they may want to purchase.

What insurance do all farmers need?

All farmers can start by looking at liability coverage to protect them for their actions. Another very important coverage is Farm Property. A local agent will walk through your farm and discuss specific incidents you should protect yourself against, such as wind damage and building collapse. Every farm property is different, so we help you build a plan that fits your farm.

When shopping for farm insurance, your agent will recommend you only buy as much coverage as you need, and nothing you don’t. This protects your farm and your family against most incidents while keeping the cost of insurance reasonable.

Brad's poultry farm

Brad has an 80-acre poultry operation with a pair of two-storey broiler barns, each equipped with an automatic generator and an alarm system. He’s hoping to build a third broiler barn within the next five years as long as his profits stay level.

Brad is looking at additional insurance to help protect his profits. He already has our basic farm property and poultry packages, and he wants to know what other coverage he could get to protect against incidents that could put off his ability to build the third barn he would like to construct.

Brad’s potential claims

Brad knows that heat prostration and other factors can potentially mean the loss of an entire flock. If anything ever happened to his generators, he’d want to make sure both the generators themselves and any damage to the flock are covered.

What insurance does Brad need?

Basic coverage

Fire and extended perils – poultry This package will ensure Brad’s chickens and eggs are protected against fire and other potential incidents.

Extra coverage

Farm Enhanced Coverage Endorsement Our Farm Enhanced Coverage Endorsement provides you with 37 farm-related coverage options offering increased coverage at a package price. If individually purchased, this coverage would cost much more.

Heat prostration – poultry This coverage will protect your flocks against heat prostration and heat exhaustion.

Power interruption – broad Our power interruption coverage for poultry comes in two levels: Basic and Broad. Brad would want Broad because it provides for most forms of power interruption, whereas Basic only provides for the loss of main power to the farm property. Broad would cover the loss if Brad’s generators failed.

Boiler and machinery The loss to the poultry due to the power interruption and subsequent failure of the generator would be covered by the Broad Form Power Interruption coverage. The repair or replacement of the generator itself, due to breakdown, would be insured through the Farm Structure Equipment Breakdown Form.

Jennifer’s dairy farm

Jennifer and her family run a 65-cow tie stall dairy farm with a heifer barn and a maternity pen. The farm has been in her family for two generations, and they are dedicated to taking care of the herd. Jennifer is thinking of expanding her operation by ten cows, and is looking for insurance that will cover higher dollar amounts for fertilizer, fuel, and other things her farm uses regularly. She’s also concerned about higher pollution risks that come with a larger herd.

Jennifer’s potential claims

Jennifer is thinking ahead about things such as waste contamination and other potential pollution hazards. If waste from her cattle contaminates a nearby body of water, Jennifer is legally responsible for the cleanup. She’s also had a few friends who have had injuries to their animals when they get stuck in stalls, so she wants to look at insurance that guards her farm against the costs associated with entrapment.

What insurance does Jennifer need?

Basic coverage

Farm livestock – elite This coverage protects Jennifer’s operation against more potential incidents, such as her cattle becoming bloated or accidentally injured. Because her risks increase with a larger herd, Elite is the best choice.

Extra coverage

Farm Enhanced Coverage Endorsement Our Farm Enhanced Coverage Endorsement provides you with 37 farm-related coverage options offering increased coverage at a package price. If individually purchased, this coverage would cost much more.

Entrapment broad form Our regular livestock coverage is not extended to animals that are normally restrained in stalls. Entrapment Broad Form covers these animals against entrapment in stalls or other areas. For dairy operations, the coverage must be on the entire milking herd rather than just one or a few cattle.

Limited pollution liability Third party bodily injury, clean-up costs, and property damage caused by a pollution incident are all covered under our special pollution insurance. It can cover costs to clean up leaked manure both on and off the property so that Jennifer’s family doesn’t have to worry about the costs involved.

Darren’s hog farm

Darren has a hog farm with a finishing barn, weaning barn, room for manure storage for up to a year, and feed equipment to support all of his hogs. Darren has friends in the industry who have lost pigs for various reasons on their farms and wants to look into how he can best protect himself against the same kind of incident.

Darren’s potential claims

Darren could have a number of incidents with his hog farm, but what he’s really looking to do is protect his farm from a significant loss due to the death of livestock in the event of a power interruption and subsequent generator failure.

What insurance does Darren need?

Basic insurance

Farm livestock – elite Because Darren has a large number of animals and wants the maximum coverage available, our Elite Farm Livestock coverage with the Broad Form Power Interruption endorsement is his best choice. This covers Darren’s hogs against most major risks, including accidental physical injury, ingestion of hardware and fumes.

Farm machinery Darren will need Farm machinery insurance to protect his feed equipment.

Extra insurance

Limited pollution liability If there’s a leak from the hog manure pile and the waste contaminates a neighbour’s field or a water source, Darren’s cleanup costs could be quite high. Our special Limited Pollution Liability insurance will cover most of those cleanup costs and any other costs that could arise from pollution from or to Darren’s farm.

Boiler and machinery The loss to the hogs due to the power interruption and subsequent failure of the generator would be covered by the Broad Form Power Interruption coverage. The repair or replacement of the generator itself, due to breakdown, would be insured through the Farm Structure Equipment Breakdown.

Wanda’s horse and vegetable farm

Wanda works full time and has a 10-acre farm with a horse barn and a few acres of land where she grows organic produce. She sells her vegetables at a local farmer’s market, and boards other people’s horses in her barn.

Wanda’s potential claims

While Wanda’s horses and vegetables may be part-time pursuits for her, there are still things she needs insurance for. As with all livestock, horses can get sick or have accidents. Wanda could also run into issues with her boarding operation and her farmer’s market stall.

What insurance does Wanda need?

Basic insurance

Farm livestock – elite Horses are a bit pricier than the average animal, so the best possible insurance is a must. Our Elite coverage will compensate you for a wide range of perils over and above what would be covered in our basic Farm Livestock package.

Extra insurance

Farmer’s market liability If someone was to slip while at Wanda’s stall, she could be looking at a liability lawsuit. This extra coverage allows Wanda to keep setting up her stall at the market every week without having to worry about anything else but selling her produce.

Horse boarding This extension of our liability insurance protects Wanda from any lawsuits that may arise from injury to the horse owners or other visitors to the horse boarding facility.

Care, Custody, or Control Because Wanda is boarding horses for others, it is important that she not only protect herself from potential lawsuits due to risks on her property, but that she also protect her client’s horses in the event that a loss to the animals occurred. Though the physical coverage for the horses would need to be placed by their owners, Wanda may want to protect herself in the event that she is deemed to be unintentionally responsible for a loss to the horses in her care.

Jacob’s grain and cattle farm

Jacob has a 500-acre farm with two beef barns and a one thousand head finishing barn. He has a lot of farm machinery that he uses in both his beef and grain operations. Jacob recently hired a couple more farm hands and is looking at purchasing more equipment. With the money that he’s spending on the new employees, he’s very conscious of the cost of lost business if any of his vital machines should break down for a day or even a week.

Jacob’s potential claims

Jacob’s operation includes a number of risk factors that could lead to a claim. His biggest concern right now is farm machinery and the loss of profit, but he should also be looking at the liability implications of having farm employees.

What insurance does Jacob need?

Basic insurance

Farm Machinery – Elite Our Elite Farm Machinery package can protect Jacob’s machinery from basic risks like fire, explosions or lightning as well as direct physical loss and most external damage.

Farm Livestock – Elite Considering the number of cattle Jacob owns, he should be looking at the best coverage available. Elite coverage insures against accidental injury and other items that our more basic Broad coverage does not cover.

Farm Produce – Fire and Lightning Because Jacob’s grain isn’t the core business of his operation, protection against fire, lightning, and explosion should be enough. Why should Jacob pay for coverage he doesn’t need?

Farmers General Liability Our farm liability insurance package protects Jacob against lawsuits from potential injuries to visitors to his farm coming onto the premises to deliver feed, or simply for a social visit.

Extra insurance

Loss of Use of Farm Machinery This endorsement will help to pay for the costs associated with the renting replacement equipment in the event that one of Jacob’s machines is damaged due to an insured peril under the Farm Machinery coverage.

Farm Accident insurance This insurance will cover Jacob and his family for physical injury or death resulting from their work on the farm.

Employee's Voluntary Compensation This endorsement will help to protect Jacob’s employees from lost wages due to physical injury caused while working on Jacob’s farm.

Employer's Liability This endorsement will help protect Jacob in the event that a lawsuit is brought against him by one of his employees.

Related links

Farm liability

Livestock and poultry

Get a quote

Auto

Home

Life

Travel

Make a claim

Group benefits forms

Online form

Online services

Not sure where to start?
Find a financial representative

Our use of cookies: We use cookies and other similar technologies to understand how you use our website and create more customized experiences for you. They improve your browsing experience and support our fraud prevention efforts. For more information, please refer to our revised Privacy Policy. By visiting this website, you agree to our use of cookies and other similar technologies as described in our Privacy Policy.

About us

Insurance

Investments

Services

Client care