If you have been one of the lucky people to hibernate for the past few months, let’s catch you up on life events to get you ready for 2022. Depending on when you went into hibernation, the Toronto Maple Leafs are on pace to lose in the first round of the playoffs, we had another federal election with another Liberal minority government, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are champions once again and there is a virus that is discussed occasionally in the news that keeps keeping on. In the world of agriculture in Canada, I need to warn you that commodity prices and fertilizer costs are higher now than when you last looked. In fact, the cost of pretty much everything from a coveted roll of toilet paper to a T-bone steak has increased.
The insurance industry continues to have volatility in some lines of business. Farm insurance continues to be one of the more stable classes, with the mix of regional mutual insurers along with growing appetite to increase the farm insurance portfolio of several national insurers, putting grain farms in a stable position for your farm insurance budget for the upcoming year.
One area of note that I would encourage all agricultural businesses to review this year is your insurance levels on your inventory. Most policies have a maximum insured value for your inventory, which can be increased at any time throughout the year. Some commercial insurance policies will include a peak season endorsement, but that is specifically included to cover short spikes in your inventory, not long-term increases due to expansion of the value of your inventory.
Rising prices on grain have led to many farmers selling their commodities while prices are strong, but if you are one of the patient farms to continue to sit on your inventory to wait for even stronger pricing, you are likely in a situation where your threshed grain, chemical, fertilizer and seed limits on your farm insurance coverage need to be reviewed. On farm policies, these limits often include a 100% co-insurance clause, meaning you need to insure your inventory to the maximum limit that you would carry to avoid being penalized in the event of a loss.
We have also seen Crop Input retailers working hard to obtain inventory for the upcoming year, so that they can provide their customers the inputs they will need to grow a crop in 2022. From our conversations with many retailers, specific products that are in short supply are Glyphosate, most types of Fertilizer and some varieties of seed. If you are one of these retailers, make sure that the limits for your insurance coverage reflect the new values of your inventory.
While there is uncertainty in many areas of life, there is also optimism. A little more rain, a lot less virus and good stable insurance coverage are the keys for this upcoming year. And the best part is that at Rempel Insurance Brokers, we can help you with the third part of that equation!
On behalf of the team at Rempel Insurance Brokers, we wish you a great year in 2022!
Be sure to seek advice and purchase insurance from those who understand your business!
David Schmidt is an Account Executive and Rempel Insurance Brokers in Morris, MB, specializing in insuring farms and businesses across Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
Office (204) 746-2320 Text (204) 712-6618 Email davids@rempelinsurance.com Web www.rempelinsurance.com