Will my homeowner’s insurance cover me since I’m not a commercial farmer?

Like any business endeavor, your farm can be both a full-fledged company or treated as just a hobby. That said, regardless of how you treat your farming activity, one thing that you need to protect yourself is proper insurance coverage. “Will my homeowner’s insurance cover me since I’m not a commercial farm?” Well, let’s have a quick discussion, shall we?

Your homeowner’s insurance may not provide adequate coverage for your farming equipment and outbuildings, so you will have to look a little bit deeper into what you require. That begs the question, “where do I begin?” Although not an all-encompassing interrogation, to get a better understanding of your needs, let’s start out by asking you a few simple questions to think about.

1. How many acres are you farming and what crops or animals are present?
   1. If we’re being honest with one another, a little acreage can be considered a hobby, whereas managing 200 or more acres will not.
   2. If you have only a few farm animals, you wouldn’t necessarily need a farmowners’ policy to protect your hobby farm.
2. Do you board or care for other people’s animals?
   1. Unfortunately, if you board and care for the animals of others on your farm, it can no longer be considered a hobby, as you assume responsibility for their safety and wellbeing.
3. Is farming your primary occupation and do you have any employees?
   1. If farming is your primary occupation, requiring employees to help run the operation, it would no longer be considered a hobby, but business. If, however, you are a one-person show, operating because you enjoy it and selling produce on the weekends, you may be able to obtain a policy as a hobby farm.
4. Who do you sell to and what are your gross annual receipts from farming?
   1. Are you selling directly to the public at your roadside stand? Does this generate $2,000 in annual revenue, or $50,000?
5. Do you offer any type of agritainment (u-pick, petting zoos, hayrides, etc.)?
   1. Do you offer to entertain others on your farm? While the idea of letting others harvest your crops for you and play with your animals sounds like fun, you would be moving outside the realm of a hobby farm insurance policy.

While these questions can give you a better idea of what type of policy is right for you and your farm, it is by no means exhaustive, and there are other factors that must be considered when determining what is right for you. Why go at this on your own? Contact Mike Lombardi of Richey-Barrett Insurance in Westlake, Ohio today at 440.835.4800 to discuss what unique risks exist with your farming operation and together we will design a customized risk management program that you can implement and keep growing knowing you are protected.