Will Farm & Ranch Insurance Cover Grain Ruined in a Silo?

Farms come in all shapes and sizes, which means no single farm and ranch insurance policy can give you all the protection you need to feel like your business, family, and workers are adequately covered.

Getting farm insurance is like bundling customized home and business policies to give yourself more coverage than you could get with one or the other. You can work closely with your agent to craft the policy that meets your farm’s needs.

One question that frequently arises during the process is whether farm and ranch insurance will cover grain ruined in a silo. The short answer is yes, in many cases. However, when it comes to farm insurance, it’s best to be specific.

Check your policy and your coverages, and make sure you talk to your agent about what coverages your policy provides for your silo and grain, which may vary depending on how the grain becomes ruined.

Learn more about farm insurance and how it covers grain ruined inside a silo.

Assessing Your Coverage

If you’re a farmer, you already know that your farm insurance policy includes coverage for just about everything on your property — your home, family, workers and visitors, necessary structures (such as barns, silos, and chicken coops), farm machinery and equipment, livestock, and products.

While these are considered standard coverages, it’s good to know exactly what’s included in your policy and make sure you’re covered for an amount that can help you keep your farm operating if you suffer a loss.

Understanding Key Differences

Few people make a distinction between a silo and a grain bin. More often than not, grain is dry-stored in a bin, a steel structure with moisture and temperature-control properties. By contrast, a silo is typically made from concrete, brick, metal, or wood and is designed to ferment what’s placed inside.

While it’s intended to ferment, silage can still go bad, making it unusable for livestock.

Finding Coverage for Your Grain

It may seem like a trivial matter when you take stock of all the other things you have going on, but the importance of thoroughly understanding the provisions of your farm insurance policy can’t be overstated.

Generally speaking, your silo and the grain in it will likely be insured against damage, but in different parts of the policy and for different reasons.

Your silo is protected along with other buildings and structures on your farm (not including your home) under what’s typically known as “farm structure coverage” or “farm outbuilding coverage.” You can get separate farm product coverage to replace materials and items you use on the farm, such as grain, feed, seed, and silage.

Farm structure coverage may insure against such perils as explosions, fire, hail, lightning, and windstorms, while farm product coverage can insure against grain spoilage and similar issues. It’s a good idea to have both types of coverage to protect your operations from as many disruptive issues as possible.

Consequently, the way in which the grain became ruined will influence the type of claim you file with your insurer.

Enhance Your Farm and Ranch Insurance With These Popular Options

What do you do if your computer system breaks down or you have a large section of electrical fence to repair? Issues like these can disrupt your farming operations.

If you added options for farm equipment breakdown and fencing coverage to your farm and ranch insurance policy, you could get help replacing your computer and fixing your fence. These are just two of more than half a dozen coverage options you can add to your policy to enhance your farm insurance and protect your livelihood.

By necessity, you can customize the farm and ranch insurance you purchase to fit the unique needs of your farming operation. Beyond basic protection for your home, buildings and structures, and farm products, several popular options are available to add coverage to your farm insurance.

7 Popular Options to Enhance Your Farm Insurance

You can add several options to your farm insurance to help guard your business against disruption. Here are a few popular options.

1. Farm Equipment Breakdown

Adding farm equipment breakdown coverage to your policy covers the physical loss of equipment used on your farm, including computers, generators, air conditioners, and boilers. That coverage can help you pay to get the equipment running again.

2. Farm Income Protection Coverage

While farm income protection coverage only guards against insured perils, this add-on to your policy could reimburse you for lost earnings and other expenses if your covered farm property causes you to lose money.

3. Fencing Coverage

Farm insurance doesn’t cover fencing. However, large farms, ranches, and farms in turbulent weather zones or with electrical fencing may find it beneficial to invest in fencing coverage.

4. Livestock Coverage

Basic farm insurance tends to cover livestock for injuries but not illness. With additional livestock coverage, your animals will be covered from death resulting from illness. Moreover, you can be reimbursed for loss of income and insured against legal costs and damages if your livestock injures someone.

5. Commercial Auto Insurance

Your auto insurance won’t cover the farm vehicles driven by your workers. Adding the commercial auto insurance option to your farm and ranch insurance helps you look after your trucks, tractors, and other vehicles.  

6. Equine Coverage

Horses have needs that differ vastly from other livestock. Equine insurance is specific to horses, providing you with coverage for death or theft, loss of use, and major medical or surgical needs.

7. Crop Coverage

Despite covering a wide range of risks, farm insurance doesn’t protect crops grown for profit. This option can help protect your operations against a loss of crops or revenue due to natural disasters, fluctuations in product prices, and other unforeseen circumstances.

These seven popular options can enhance your farm and ranch insurance coverage, giving you bonus protection against losses that might hurt your business.

Explore Your Options

Because farm insurance can be tailored to your farm’s unique characteristics, many optional forms of coverage are available that could help protect your farm and your family. Ask your agent about these and other coverage options that might be available to you.

5 Excellent Reasons to Have Farm Insurance

You have spent countless hours and poured thousands of dollars setting up your farm, but you might still question whether you are doing enough to protect it against life’s unexpected surprises. From natural disasters to animal illnesses, farm insurance can help you protect your investment. 

You should consider obtaining a farm insurance policy if any of the following descriptors apply to you:

1. You Want to Protect Your Feed and Livestock

Farm insurance policies can be customized to cover a wide range of livestock, such as:

• Pigs

• Goats

• Emu

• Chickens

• Horses

• Cattle

You can obtain individual coverage on high-value animals (such as show horses), take out a blanket policy on your entire farm, or insure a specific herd. Naturally, the type and level of coverage you select will have a direct impact on premium costs, so you can scale back or ramp up your level of coverage to ensure that the policy fits your needs and your budget. 

2. You Want to Protect Your Investment 

Farm insurance doesn’t just cover your livestock: It can also ensure structures like barns or equipment such as tractors. In other words, you can take out a policy on just about any piece of equipment or asset related to your day-to-day farm work. 

3. You Are a Full-Time Farmer

As is the case with any full-time job, you and your loved ones depend on the revenue you gain from your farm work, but despite your best efforts, plenty of things — natural disasters, inclement weather, or even just a simple run of bad luck — can put that source of income in jeopardy.

Farm insurance can help you make your farm more resilient to the whims of Mother Nature. You can cover equipment damage, livestock losses, and more, and depending on your provider, you may even be able to add supplemental income coverage. 

4. You Are Starting a Hobby Farm

Aside from career farmers, hobby farmers serve to benefit from farm insurance as well. While you may not be fully dependent on your farm for income, you have undoubtedly poured time, money, and sweat into making it a reality.

When disaster strikes, a quality farm insurance policy can help you recoup your losses and start fresh. A comprehensive plan can also protect you from liability in the event a guest or passerby is injured by one of your animals. 

5. You Need Liability Protection in the Event of an Injury

Liability protection is a must, especially if you engage in any agritourism and therefore allow visitors onto your property. Farm insurance with comprehensive liability protection can help you cover the costs of medical bills and legal fees. When choosing a policy for this particular purpose, ensure that the one you select provides an adequate level of coverage based on the size of your farm and how many guests you typically receive. 

Finding the Perfect Policy 

There are plenty of great reasons to obtain a farm insurance policy for your property, and it is great for operations of all sizes and specialties, from calf-cow businesses to hobbyists and everyone in between. 

That said, not all farm insurance policies are created equal, so when searching for a plan for your farm, make sure to explore all add-on options, including liability and livestock protection, to properly obtain the exact coverage you need.