Grazing lease insurance question.

[kcnatural]

Kind of a legal question here. I own property that is leased out for grazing to another guy for cattle. If one of his cows escapes onto the road and is struck by a vehicle am I liable? Should I carry insurance on the property?

[M16]

Kind of a legal question here. I own property that is leased out for grazing to another guy for cattle. If one of his cows escapes onto the road and is struck by a vehicle am I liable? Should I carry insurance on the property?

Neither of you would be responsible. Unless it is a constantly recurring problem. Hence the negligence. Yes you should have liability insurance on your property. Whoever you have your homeowners insurance through should easily be able to add your other property on to the policy.

[solocam_aggie]

M16 got it right. As a lessee I carry insurance on every place I lease just as a back up. It’s a couple hundred a year.

[ThisLadyHunts]

My answer? Whether or not you can be held liable has nothing to do with the law. It is dependent upon where you live and whether or not you can get a jury of your peers. I live in Travis County and don't stand a chance of ever getting a jury of my peers.

Yes, you should have liability insurance on ALL property you own.

[bugleboy]

Not all homeowners policy will allow you to add farm liability coverages. You may well need to get a separate policy. The cost will be related to your total acreage, and of course the amount of coverage you want to carry. As a general rule, you won’t be looking at a large bill. Definitely worth the protection. Even if you’re not found liable, you can be sued. The insurance carrier will provide their lawyers for your protection.

[flywise]

If your place is big enough for a grazing lease you might need a farm liability policy. My place is only 11 acres and had to get a farm liability policy with Germania. It's still cheap for a million or two in coverage.

[kcnatural]

Thanks everyone. I already have insurance on the place. I was texting/negotiating with my insurance agent over email. Her selling point was if a cow got out I would be liable even if it's not my cow. I was nitpicking the whole policy which includes my home and farm liability. I got on the green screen and asked the question about needing the insurance while she was breaking the policy down.

The farm liability is $18 a month for 320 acres so its a no brainer.

Thanks again

[Tex21]

Most homeowners policies won't extend liability to a property if there is a man made structure(a fence is considered man made) on that property. Like mention above a farm liability policy is the way to go and should not be a large premium.

Also, like mentioned above that if it is not a reoccurring problem then you should not be liable for a cow getting out.

[TPMD Hunter]

Kind of a legal question here. I own property that is leased out for grazing to another guy for cattle. If one of his cows escapes onto the road and is struck by a vehicle am I liable? Should I carry insurance on the property?

Depends on the state. I always carry a liability policy on my properties just in case. Even if it's a junk case you still have to defend it until it's thrown out.

[CoolHandLuke]

Most personal lines carriers will not write the liability on property if is over a certain acerage and livestock count. If anyone needs any help shoot me a pm as we have a guy around Waco that writes a ton of farm and ranch.

[BRUTE 23]

The answer is... maybe. How did the cow get out?

You should have insurance and yes it is cheap. You might ask your lessee to show proof of their insurance just in case, also.

My leases say the landowner is responsible for perimeter fencing. Am Iiable or are they?

There is a lot of maybe(s).

[Bill]

Who’s liable? The attorney for the injuried party will sue everybody- you, the lessee, and whoever installed the fence if it has a metal fence company marker on it.

I would carry a liability policy, especially if you have assets they can go after. If you’re broke and have no insurance, no lawyer will take the case on a contingency payment basis.

Have you ever looked at setting up an LLC in the name of the property, which separates you from any liability claims? Just an idea- I’m not a lawyer nor know anything about Texas law.

[SCHC]

I’m in the insurance business, get a liability policy to cover yourself. You will be thankful if something happens. I don’t work for them but check Texas Farm Bureau Insurance.

[RWB]

Do like our ranch owner does for our deer lease and make the cost a part of the lease. We have to buy our rancher a liability policy every year

[Ag 96]

You could be an additional insured on your lessee’s policy, but you’re still trusting the lessee to keep the policy in place (ie pay for it and not cancel it). I have a farm policy of my own in place (although I run my own cattle), and the liability is dirt cheap.

The property insurance on the house and barns, on the other hand, is getting ridiculous down here.