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Henco, a farmer needs to be concerned uith the possible efiect of a substantial 

 casualty loss on his business, his fanil^s vrelfare and his financial position 

 and ability to continue farming. To provide funds to replace the property loss 

 or to indemnify the farner for the loss of use or value, insurance is offered by 

 various companies and for some of the various risks or exposures involved. 



Property Casualty Insurance 



Insurance provides a way for an individual, the farm ovmer, to contribute to 

 a fund that v/ill be used to defray expenses that arise from losses due to damage 

 to, or destruction of, his property by fire or other selected causes. 



The insurance company's liability to the policy-holder is nonnally figured 

 on the actual value at the time of loss of the property destroyed, but not exceed- 

 ing in any case the coverage specified in the policy. An insurance policy is a 

 contract c Under its terms, the company agrees to make certain payments or indemnity 

 for losses that may occur, in return for the payment of a premium. 



In most cases, the limit of the insurance company's liability under a policy 

 has been interpreted to be the depreciate d replacement value of the property 

 damaged or destroyed. Small amounts of damage, which make up the majority of 

 claims for many companies, are frequently settled by complete replacement or repair. 

 The most common insurance coverage is that which insures property against damage 

 resulting from fire, Ifany companies, offer additional endorsements to the original 

 contract and may give extra coverage c Protection from such hazards as smoke damage, 

 windstorm, hail, explosion, falling aircraft, etc., may be provided for by an 

 "extended coverage" endorsement. 



Cost of Insurance 



Casualty insurance costs vary a good deal; the kind of property insured, its 

 location, the amount of insurance carried, the risks insured, and the type of 

 company involved, all have an effect on cost. The type of construction of the 

 buildings and different kinds of livestock and machinery may have different rates. 

 Special situations may have attached discounts or penalties. Protective devices 

 such as lightning rods, approved fire extinguishers, hydrants and farm water supplies 

 may affect rates. Spacing, use and size of buildings affect rates. 



Checking Insurance 



In spite of urgent suggestions to policy holders to "Read your Policy" exper- 

 ience show that few policy holders do so. There are some precautions that farmer 

 policy-holders should take for their own protection, A partial list is given below: 



1, Check the amount of coverage, 



A. If the policy covers a single item of property and is the only policy, 

 amounts shown on the policy in different sections should agree, 



B, If the policy is one of several policies on the same property and 

 policies are in different companies make sure the policies are in 

 agreement, (i,e, "concurrent" in insurance language) and that the 



sum of the amounts of the policies equals the total coverage you want. 



