MULTI-peril crop insurance pioneer Latevo is returning to the farm income protection market in 2018 after bowing out last season.
The company, which first championed multi-peril insurance in 2014, said it had re-configured its coverage plan to provide a more cost-effective and comprehensive income protection solution than before.
It was conscious farmers had been reluctant to commit to past coverage by various emerging multi-peril coverage providers, uneasy about the upfront costs involved.
Latevo’s new farm income protection plan’s cost is equivalent to the price of a summer spray – roughly as much as half the price of its old insurance model.
“That’s exactly the sort of price range farmers and their representatives have been calling for,” said Latevo chief executive officer Andrew Trotter.
Price points will range from $14 a hectare to a maximum of $26/ha for sizeable coverage of up to 90 per cent of average crop income.
“To deliver the correct price we needed to find like-minded partners and we’ve been able to find it with certain underwriters at Lloyd’s,” Mr Trotter said.
Last year, the company’s early momentum in the market stalled when it was unable to lock in strong enough underwriter commitment for the 2017-18 cropping season.
Latevo’s revised plan is based on a customised crop income protection model to recover cropping costs if a farmer is hit by the devastating effects of drought, flood, frost, heat stress or other designated perils.
The new model splits in three categories enabling progressive coverage during the season, depending on seasonal conditions and the growers’ choice.
“Changes from our original product make the offering far more specific to the individual farmer,” Mr Trotter said.
Latevo had also invested significantly in technology to make the application process more refined and user-friendly, via an online application process.
To gain a full understanding of a growers’ financial history and offer a competitively priced solution the individual financial assessment component will be provided by Agri-Analytics, simplifying the application process.
Latevo operations head Felicity Nolen said providing the best price point involved a high-level of due diligence to assess each farming entity on their individual merits.
Latevo will also launch a crop monitor, which incorporates an on-farm weather station.
The custom application, developed by Geosys, integrates its proprietary algorithms to better monitor crops throughout the season.
