Successful farmers have to have the stomach to manage change and uncertainty. It’s a tough business, especially considering how many risk factors are out of one’s control.
The Santam Insurance Barometer Report revealed that the biggest challenge farmers face is weather-related crop risks. Along with seasonal threats like hail, frost, flooding and drought, climate change is causing structural shifts in weather patterns and forcing some farmers to relocate their crops to more suitable locations.
The upside is that crop risk is a threat that can be mitigated using agriculture insurance and certain risk management practices.
The role of crop insurance
You can’t predict a change in weather, but you can protect your crops with the right insurance. Santam Agriculture offers specialist knowledge and continued research into the science of crop damage, and knowledgeable brokers to advise our clients on world-class crop insurance solutions.
Our products include:
- Hail insurance
- Multi-Peril Crop Insurance, and
- Fire Insurance
As well as specialist insurance cover such as Fire on Veld Insurance and Weather Index Insurance.
The issue of cost
50% of total crops in South Africa are uninsured in any given year*, mostly due to affordability. For other farmers, there’s the temptation to save money by taking out crop insurance only when they expect adverse weather conditions.
The truth is, paying premiums consistently turns out to be more cost effective and less risky than paying them once-off.
*Santam Insurance Barometer Report, 2020-2021
What you can do
Over and above taking out crop insurance, farmers can take their own precautions to mitigate weather risk. Being fire-smart is one of them.
Ways to reduce fire risk include:
- Investing in equipment, such as petrol/fuel-powered water pumps
- Restricting use of farm machinery when fire risk is high
- Establishing firebreaks between their land and roads or railways
- Educating staff in firefighting techniques and safety standards
- Joining a registered Fire Protection Association (FPA)
Santam’s promise to you
Farming is a business, so you need a company that insures you like a business. As your partner in agriculture, we aim to make insurance even more accessible and affordable. We’ll continue to invest in effective risk management in order to make a real difference, so you can create a sustainable future.
Need a quote? Speak to your intermediary about Santam’s crop insurance solutions.