Crop Hail Insurance Questions and Answers

Q. Who is ehail.ca?
We are a Canadian company providing farmers with easy online access for quoting and purchasing crop hail insurance.

Q. What happens after I send in the required written Notice of Loss to the hail insurance company? The hail insurance company assigns an adjuster to handle your claim. The adjuster will make every effort to contact you or your representative to establish an appointment to inspect the fields for which hail damage is being claimed. It is important that you or your designated representative accompany the adjuster on all field inspections.

Q. When does my Hail Insurance take effect?
Hail Insurance becomes effective noon the day following the date of application if received by the Insurance company before midnight.

Q. When does my Hail Insurance policy expire?
Your policy will expire at midnight standard time on October 31st or when the crop has been harvested which ever comes first.

Q. Does my Hail Insurance Policy cover any other perils?
Yes, most policies extend to cover loss or damage by fire to the insured crop. Coverage is paid only on the value of the crop to a maximum of the insurance per acre. (Some restrictions apply)

Q. What is a "Harvest Allowance"?
Most companies pay a harvest allowance when your loss from hail reaches or exceeds 90% on the particular acre or acres of crop insured bringing the total award to 100%. (May be different with different companies and deductibles)

Q. Can I insure my crop for more than it's worth?
Insurance limits purchased should be adequate to replace only the income lost due to hail.

Q. Usually when I buy hail insurance, it is early in the growing season. Later on, if the crop really looks good, I will purchase additional limits. Is there a problem in buying insurance this way?
This is quite acceptable. The only requirement is that on your application you must declare the limits of all hail insurance carried with any other insurance company.

Q. My neighbor cash rents his land to my son. Can I purchase a hail insurance policy on my son's crop?
Generally, no. You must have an insurable interest in each and every crop you insure. That means you must personally stand to lose money in the event your son's crop is lost or damaged by hail. If you don't, then you do not have the right to purchase insurance.
The same holds true for the landlord. The cash rent the landlord has collected is seen to remove any insurance interest he may have had in your son's crop.

Q. Is there anything I should do when I receive my hail policy?
When your policy arrives you should review it thoroughly to ensure that
a) you understand and are familiar with the terms and conditions of the policy; and
b) the description of the crops insured, legal location and number of acres insured are correct.
If there is a mistake, it is much easier to correct at this time than after a loss.

Q. I farm some land which is a considerable distance from my home quarter. Is there any rule in the policy that says I have to inspect these insured crops a certain number of times over the summer?
There is no rule requiring a set number of inspections of these crops. Remember, however, that the Notice of Loss must be filed with the hail insurance company within three days of the storm causing loss or damage. Small localized storms do occur and for that reason alone, you or your representative should inspect, or make arrangements to have these crops inspected, periodically.

Q. What crops are most commonly insured against hail damage?
The most common crop hail insurance crops covered are: Canola, Cereals (Wheat , Barley, Oats, etc.), and Pulse (Field Peas, Lentils, Beans, etc.).

Did You Know...

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings are issued for anticipated severe hail events.
Severe Thunderstorm Warning criteria for hail is:
- Hail 20 mm in diameter or greater (nickel-sized or larger)
Canada's "Hail Alley" resides in Alberta and is an area from just south of Calgary to just north of Red Deer and west of Highway #2 into the foothills.
On average, the Prairies receive approximately 130 severe hail events per year. Ontario receives between 25-30 severe hail events.
Two-thirds of Canada's major documented hail storms have occurred in Alberta*. Eight of Canada's 18 largest hail insurance claims have involved the City of Calgary*. (*data courtesy of Public Safety Canada Disaster Database)
On average, July is the most active month of the year for hail. However, one of the costliest hailstorms in Canadian history occurred in Alberta in the month of September.
Record-sized hailstones are named after the individual who finds and preserves them.
The largest hailstone recorded in Canada was the Gawel stone (290 g) near Cedoux, SK August 1973 (Charlton 1997, 1987 Edmonton Tornado Atlas, University of Alberta).
A thunderstorm on July 2, 2012 in northwestern Ontario produced extremely large hail in the Sioux Lookout area. One hailstone was measured with a diameter of about 9 cm - some of the largest hail the province has seen in years.