What does farm insurance cover, and what is compulsory?

This guide is for anyone running a farm or smallholding in the UK who wants to know which sections a policy can include. It also sets out the two parts the law requires, with the statute behind each, and the gaps worth checking on your schedule.

Jump to information on:

• What a farm policy covers
• Which parts does the law require?
• What a policy may leave out
• Extras to ask about
• Who needs which part?
• How the price is worked out
• FAQs

What a farm policy covers

It covers the sections you choose to put on your policy. Quotezone’s farm insurance page describes it as a policy that bundles a range of coverage options for your own farm or smallholding. A livestock farmer’s policy would include livestock cover, for example, while a crop farmer may not need it.

Each section has its own sum insured and conditions, so check your schedule for names and limits.

Section	What it can include
Buildings and farmhouse	Repairing or rebuilding barns, stores and the farmhouse after fire or storm damage
Contents	Household contents and farm office equipment
Machinery and equipment	Tractors, implements and mobile plant such as telehandlers
Livestock	Death or theft of animals, with disease cover as an option
Crops in store and produce	Harvested grain, feed and stored produce
Farm vehicles	Use on the farm and, with road cover added, on public roads
Employers’ liability	Claims from employees injured or made ill at work
Public and products liability	Claims from visitors, neighbours or customers
Business interruption	Lost income after an insured event
Goods in transit	Produce or livestock while it’s being moved
Legal expenses	Costs of some legal disputes
Diversification	A farm shop, holiday lets or events

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You can compare farm insurance quotes from UK insurance providers on Quotezone with one short form.

Specialist providers shown on Quotezone’s farm page include Rowett Insurance, Brady Insurance and Brookhurst Risk Solutions. Seopa Ltd, trading as Quotezone, is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Which parts does the law require?

In Great Britain, two parts: employers’ liability if you have employees, and motor insurance for farm vehicles used on a road or other public place. Northern Ireland has its own legislation for both, set out below.

Employers’ liability, if you employ staff

GOV.UK says you must get employers’ liability insurance as soon as you become an employer. It must cover at least £5 million and come from an authorised insurer. The £5 million minimum is set by regulation 3 of the Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Regulations 1998.

The duty comes from section 1 of the Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969, which applies in England, Scotland and Wales. Section 5 makes each uninsured day an offence. GOV.UK puts the fine at £2,500 for every day you’re not properly insured, and £1,000 if you don’t display your certificate or show it to inspectors.

In Northern Ireland, the same duty sits in Article 5 of the 1972 Order, which covers every employer carrying on business there.

Who counts as staff on a farm?

Section 2 of the 1969 Act defines an employee as someone working under a contract of service or apprenticeship. That contract can be written, oral or implied, so a seasonal or casual worker can count. GOV.UK notes that the rules differ for agency staff, freelancers and contractors.

In Great Britain, GOV.UK says you don’t need the cover if you only employ family members. It names husband, wife, civil partner, parent, grandparent, step-parent, child, grandchild, stepchild, brother, sister and half-siblings.

Section 2 words this exemption around relatives of the employer. If your farm is a limited company, the company is the employer.

In Great Britain, a limited company is also exempt if its only employee owns 50% or more of its issued share capital. This comes from a 2004 amendment to the 1998 Regulations. For Northern Ireland, nibusinessinfo gives the same exemption and says the family exemption applies only if your business is not a limited company.

In Great Britain, check with your insurer how the family exemption applies to a limited company before relying on it.

Motor insurance for farm vehicles on the road

Section 143 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 makes it an offence to use a motor vehicle on a road or other public place without at least third-party insurance. It applies in Great Britain. Northern Ireland has the same rule in Article 90 of the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981.

GOV.UK’s page on driving without insurance says police could give you a £300 fixed penalty and 6 penalty points. In court you could face an unlimited fine and disqualification. Police can also seize the vehicle, and in some cases destroy it.

Vehicles that never leave your land

In Great Britain, the law doesn’t require motor insurance for a vehicle used only on private land away from any road or other public place. The Motor Vehicles (Compulsory Insurance) Act 2022 confirmed that position. It extends to England, Scotland and Wales only, so Northern Ireland farmers may want to confirm the position with their insurer.

In Great Britain, section 144A of the Road Traffic Act 1988 means a registered vehicle still needs insurance unless you declare it off the road (SORN). If a yard-only tractor is stolen or damaged, the loss is yours unless your machinery section covers it.

Other cover is your choice by law

No law makes you insure your buildings or livestock for ordinary farming. Some sidelines add a duty: in England, a licence to hire out horses requires public liability insurance under Schedule 5 of the 2018 animal activities licensing regulations.

A lender, landlord or contract can still make a section a condition. Quotezone’s farm page gives a mortgage on the farmhouse as one example, so read those terms before you drop a section. Our guide to what business insurance you actually need covers the legal duties for other trades.

What a policy may leave out

Exclusions vary by wording, so treat the points below as questions to check against your schedule.

• Wear and tear: check whether gradual deterioration or poor maintenance is excluded from the machinery and buildings sections.
• For breakdown, find out whether a sudden mechanical or electrical failure is covered, or sits in a separate engineering section.
• Road use: look for the uses your vehicle cover allows. Quotezone’s guide to classes of use explains how carrying your own goods differs from carrying goods for payment.
• In England, Defra and APHA say you will not be compensated for consequential losses after a government cull, such as future income from eggs or offspring.
• Security conditions: read what the policy asks for on locks, immobilisers or storage, because a theft claim can depend on them.
• Check the unoccupancy clause for how long a building can stand empty before cover changes.

Extras to ask about

Livestock disease and movement restriction cover links most directly to government rules. In England, the Defra guidance says compensation is generally paid for healthy animals culled. It is generally not paid for animals that die before they are culled. A disease section can fill some of that gap, so check which diseases and restrictions it lists.

Business interruption can replace income you lose while you recover from an insured event. Ask how long the indemnity period runs, and check it against how long your farm would take to recover.

Environmental damage cover is worth asking about if you store fuel, slurry or chemicals. Check whether it pays for clean-up on your own land as well as a neighbour’s.

Diversification add-ons extend a farm policy to a shop, holiday lets or events. Quotezone’s farm page says many farm insurers let you add public liability for a farm shop or open farm.

Who needs which part?

It depends on what happens on your farm.

If you employ anyone outside close family

Employers’ liability applies from their first day. The farm page says many farm insurers let you bundle it with a farm policy. Employers’ liability insurance can also be arranged on its own.

If the public visits your land

In England and Wales, section 2 of the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 gives you a duty to take reasonable care that visitors are reasonably safe. The Occupiers’ Liability Act 1984 can extend a duty to trespassers over dangers you know about.

Northern Ireland has its own Occupiers’ Liability Act (Northern Ireland) 1957, and Scotland has the Occupiers’ Liability (Scotland) Act 1960. Our guide to what public liability insurance is explains how that cover works.

If you keep livestock near neighbours

In England and Wales, section 4 of the Animals Act 1971 makes you liable when your livestock strays onto someone else’s land and causes damage. Horses on land in England fall under a separate section. In Northern Ireland, Article 5 of the Animals (Northern Ireland) Order 1976 sets a similar rule.

A public liability section can respond to these claims, so check its limit.

If you sell produce or run a farm shop

Look at products liability, which can cover claims that something you sold caused injury or damage. Make sure the shop itself is named on your schedule.

How the price is worked out

Quotezone’s farm page does not publish an average price, and says each policy depends on the farm’s own needs. It lists the factors insurers look at, beyond the sections and add-ons you choose:

• your location, as some regions have a higher risk of equipment theft
• any claims in the past five years
• the age and market value of the farmhouse and outbuildings
• the value of your livestock, farm vehicles and equipment

Comparing quotes for your own farm is how to see a real figure.

You might also need

• Farm vehicle insurance: for tractors, telehandlers and pickups that use the road.
• Public liability insurance: if you run a farm shop, host open days or have footpaths across your land.
• Goods in transit insurance: for produce, feed or equipment while you move it between sites.

Farm insurance FAQs

Does farm insurance cover livestock lost to disease?

That usually depends on whether your policy includes a disease section, so check which diseases it names. In England, Defra and APHA generally compensate for healthy animals culled to control diseases such as bovine TB and bird flu. They generally don’t pay for animals that die before the cull, or for lost future income. The Defra page applies to England only.

Do seasonal workers need employers’ liability cover?

They do if they work for you under a contract of service. Section 2 of the 1969 Act says that contract can be written, oral or implied, so a few weeks at harvest can count. In Great Britain, close family are exempt if they are your only staff. Agency staff and contractors are treated differently, so ask your insurer about them.

Does a policy cover livestock straying onto a road?

It can, through the public liability section, if your animals injure someone or damage their property. In England and Wales, section 8 of the Animals Act 1971 applies the ordinary duty of care to animals straying onto a highway, with an exception for some unfenced land. Check the section’s limit and any fencing or gate conditions on your schedule.

Sources

1. Quotezone, “Farm insurance”, https://www.quotezone.co.uk/business-insurance/farm-insurance. Last updated 10 October 2024. Accessed 13 October 2026.
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This article is intended as generic information only and is not intended to apply to anybody’s specific circumstances, demands or needs. The views expressed are not intended to provide any financial service or to give any recommendation or advice. Products and services are only mentioned for illustrative rather than promotional purposes.