Talking With Insurance Companies

Chicken ownership was once quite common when most people grew their own food, but after the modern world went through a period of industrialization, owning chickens became less popular. However, the numbers of property owners with a backyard flock have grown in the last several years. Now, as many as 13 million Americans have backyard chickens. As great as it is to see some old-fashioned ideas come back around, having so many homeowners who own chickens brings about questions about other things, specifically homeowner's insurance. Here are a few things you should know about your homeowner's insurance and your chickens. 

Typical homeowner's insurance does not cover farm operations. 

The downfall to having chickens on your property is this: your typical homeowner's insurance will not cover anything relative to farm operations. In general terms, chickens are farm-related livestock. Therefore, if something happens to your chickens or because of your chickens, it is highly unlikely that the damages will be covered by your current homeowner's insurance policy. In fact, many homeowner insurance policies will have strict outlines as to what is and is not considered to be a farm animal and how that affects the insurance coverage. 

It is best to invest in farm insurance if you have a larger flock. 

A larger flock of chickens probably means you have a rather large outbuilding to house them, equipment and supplies to care for your flock, and a lot of money invested in your flock. All this should be properly protected, and your homeowner's insurance just doesn't cover this kind of thing because it is, again, farm-related. In some states, there may be add-ons you can get for your regular policy that would cover extra equipment and exterior structures regardless of their purpose or use, but these add-ons are rarely available through most providers. 

Your coop may be protected if it is a building that was already insured. 

If you had an exterior garage or outbuilding that you decided to use for housing your chickens after it was already insured by your regular homeowner policy, it will probably still be covered if something happens to it. For example, if a storm blows through and knocks the chicken coop down, your insurance may pick up the tab. However, it is always best to check with your provider before just assuming that adding a flock of chickens to the mix will not change anything about your coverage. 

For more information, check out a website like http://gateway-insurance.com today.