Agritourism Insurance: What It Covers, What It Costs and How to Get Quotes
Updated: 5 days ago
By Stephen Loke of AgritourismSuccess.com, whose farm is featured in Bloomberg News and Asahi Shimbun
The Saturday Night That Ended a Farm
On October 11, 2014, a haunted hayride rolled down a hill at Harvest Hill Farms in Mechanic Falls, Maine. The 1979 Jeep towing the wagon could not stop. A 17-year-old girl was killed and 22 other people were injured (Portland Press Herald).
Prosecutors later said the Jeep had numerous safety problems. The farm pleaded guilty to driving to endanger. It filed for bankruptcy and was sold at auction (CBS Boston / AP).
Read that again. One ride. One night. One brake failure. A family lost their daughter, and a farm that had hosted thousands of happy visitors was gone.
I am not telling you this to scare you off agritourism. I am telling you because the farms that last are run by owners who take this page seriously before opening day, not after.
Here is the uncomfortable truth most farm owners learn too late. The policy that protects your barns, your tractors and your crops was almost never written for a paying stranger with a toddler on a hay wagon.
In this guide you will learn:
What agritourism insurance actually covers, and the gaps that catch farmers out
Which activities push your risk (and your premium) up
What coverage costs, and the exact factors underwriters price
How agritourism liability laws work, and why a warning sign is not a shield
A step-by-step process to get quotes, plus the questions to ask your agent
How to lower your premium and the odds of ever filing a claim
Who is writing this. I am a durian farmer who has welcomed guests from around the world. I am not an insurance agent or a lawyer. Everything below is built on published guidance from university extension lawyers, the USDA, the CDC and insurance industry data, and every source is listed at the end.
Bottom line up front: If you invite the public onto your farm, paid or free, tell your insurer in writing and get every activity named on your policy. Everything else in this article helps you do that well, and pay less for it.
The Day You Open Your Gate, You Are in a Different Business
Agritourism is no longer a sideline. U.S. farms and ranches earned $1.26 billion from agritourism in 2022, up 12.4% from 2017 after adjusting for inflation, and 57% of U.S. counties reported agritourism income (USDA Economic Research Service). About 28,600 farms reported this income, averaging $44,000 each (Penn State NERCRD).
That money comes with a catch nobody puts on the brochure.
The moment you invite the public in, your farm stops being only a place of work. It becomes a public venue. Penn State Extension puts it bluntly: agritourism participants are owed the highest duty of care, so landowners must inspect their property and warn of hazards (Penn State Extension).
Now think about who is walking through your gate:
A mother pushing a stroller over ruts she has never seen before
A seven-year-old who thinks the electric fence is a climbing frame
A grandfather with a heart condition on a bouncing hay wagon
A bride's guests who have had four glasses of your wine
These people have no farm training. And farms are dangerous even for the professionals. In 2022, farming, fishing and forestry workers died on the job at a rate of 23.5 per 100,000 full-time workers, against 3.7 for all U.S. workers (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). That is more than six times the average, and those are the people who know the hazards.
Juries are writing bigger checks than ever
When something goes wrong, the bill is no longer a few thousand dollars. Researchers at Marathon Strategies counted nearly 200 jury verdicts of $10 million or more against companies in 2025, totalling about $25.6 billion. That was a 40.7% jump in one year and the highest count since they began tracking in 2009 (Insurance Journal).
You do not need a nuclear verdict to lose your farm. A single serious injury, plus two years of legal defense, is enough for most family operations.
Operators feel it
In a 2025 national study of 994 agritourism operators by the University of Vermont and the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, the cost and availability of insurance ranked as the number one issue rated "very challenging", ahead of labor and marketing (Whitehouse et al., 2025). Another 81% said liability concerns were at least somewhat challenging.
The point: Insurance is the problem most operators lose sleep over, and the one most of them understand least. Fix that, and you have an edge over most of the farms in your county.
The Most Expensive Sentence in Agritourism: "My Farm Policy Covers That"
Almost every farm owner says it before opening day. "I've got a farm policy. I'm covered."
Maybe. But probably not for what you are about to do.
Lawyers at the Ohio State University Agricultural and Resource Law Program explain why. Farm and ranch liability policies cover a wide range of risks, but they often do not include the risks of agritourism. In their words, "there is no coverage unless the landowner has added a specific agritourism rider to the general policy" (Hall and Bachelor, Ohio State University, 2019).
The reason is simple. Your farm policy was priced for farming. Wagon rides, horseback rides, petting zoos, corn mazes and bouncy houses "present a higher likelihood of harm than many ordinary activities", and the people doing them often have little experience of being on a farm (same source).
The same factsheet warns that selling food to visitors is a separate risk again. The possibility of a visitor getting a foodborne illness "is not usually addressed in a general farm liability policy."
A real farmer, a real gap
In 2024, a farmer in Leelanau County, Michigan, told a local newspaper that the bread-making workshops he wanted to run were not covered under his existing $3 million policy. "These workshops are not covered under our existing $3 million coverage, which is crazy," he said. "And $3,000 is ridiculous for people to mix water, flour and salt into a bowl with their own hands" (The Leelanau Ticker).
Three million dollars of cover. Not one cent for a bread class. That is how insurance works: what is not named is often not covered.
The five gaps that catch farm owners
The activity gap. The new activity is not listed on your policy, so the insurer argues it was never priced or covered.
The paying-guest gap. Policies treat a neighbor helping at harvest very differently from a stranger who bought a ticket.
The food and drink gap. Jam, baked goods, cider and wine create product and liquor liability that a farm policy may exclude.
The vehicle gap. A tractor and wagon carrying paying passengers is not the same risk as a tractor in a field. Check whether your auto or farm equipment cover applies.
The people-you-pay gap. Seasonal gate staff, cafe workers and event crews may need workers' compensation that your farm labor arrangements do not provide.
And there is a sixth trap that sits behind all five. If you change how you use your property and do not tell your insurer, you give them an argument when you file a claim. The Ohio State factsheet's advice is plain: consult your agent and update the policy whenever you add new activities.
The two-minute test: Email your agent today. List every visitor activity you run or plan to run. Ask one question: "Please confirm in writing which of these are covered, under which part of my policy, and at what limit." The reply will tell you more than the policy wording ever will.
If you run overnight stays, read my guide on how to protect your farm stay. Farm stays carry their own legal and safety checklist.
What Agritourism Insurance Actually Covers
"Agritourism insurance" is not one policy. The Ohio State lawyers define it as a customized rider that adds or amends liability coverage above and beyond your farm's general policy. In practice, a well-protected operation is built in layers, like a stack. Each layer answers a different question: who got hurt, by what, and who pays?
Here are the layers, from the ground up.
Layer 1: Your farm property and farm liability policy
This is the foundation you probably already own. It protects your buildings, equipment, livestock and your liability as a farmer. Keep it. Just do not expect it to carry the weight of paying visitors on its own.
Layer 2: Agritourism liability (the core layer)
This is either an agritourism endorsement added to your farm policy or a separate commercial general liability (CGL) policy. It is the layer that responds when a visitor is hurt or their property is damaged. A good one includes:
Bodily injury and property damage to visitors, the big-ticket claims
Medical payments, which pay small medical bills quickly, regardless of fault, and often stop a lawsuit before it starts
Legal defense, paying your lawyers even when the claim against you is weak or false
Specialist agritainment policies are commonly written at limits such as $2 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate, with higher limits available (PPIB).
Layer 3: Product and liquor liability
If visitors eat it, drink it or take it home, you have product exposure. Pick-your-own produce, pies, preserves, cider and farm-cafe food all count. Wine tastings, cider bars and wedding receptions add liquor liability, which many general policies exclude unless you add it.
Layer 4: Vehicles and people you pay
Commercial auto for vehicles used in the business, including any that carry guests
Hired and non-owned auto, which covers you when staff use their own cars on farm business
Workers' compensation for employees. Rules vary by state and country. Do not assume an agricultural exemption covers your gate staff, cafe workers or event crew. Ask.
Layer 5: Specialty endorsements
These close the gaps that general policies like to exclude:
Animal contact: petting zoos, pony rides, horseback riding, goat yoga
Special events: weddings, festivals, concerts, private parties
Abuse and molestation: essential if you host school groups, camps or youth programs. Some agritainment programs offer it as an option (PPIB)
Property and business income: if a barn doubles as your event venue, tell your insurer. A fire in October can wipe out your whole season's income, not just the building
Layer 6: Umbrella or excess liability
An umbrella sits on top of your liability and auto policies. When a serious claim burns through the limit below it, the umbrella pays the rest, up to its own limit. Given the verdict numbers you saw earlier, this is the cheapest peace of mind in the whole stack.
The free layer most farmers forget: other people's insurance
Caterers, bounce-house companies, food trucks, wedding planners and anyone who rents your barn should carry their own liability insurance. Rutgers University's agritourism training tells operators to require appropriate insurance from these partners and to be named as an additional insured on their policy (Rutgers NJAES). Ask for a certificate of insurance before they arrive. No certificate, no gate pass.
Underwriter's view: An underwriter does not ask "Is this a farm?" They ask "What exactly happens here, how many people does it happen to, and what stops it going wrong?" Answer those three questions on paper before you ask for a quote, and you will be treated as a better risk.
For more on the people side of this, see my guide to managing liability when hosting farm animals.
The Agritourism Risk Ladder: Match Your Cover to Your Activities
Not every activity carries the same risk, and underwriters price them very differently. Think of your farm as a ladder. Every rung you climb brings in more money per visitor, and more exposure per visitor.
The Ohio State factsheet lists the activities insurers expect to see, from you-pick and school tours to hay wagon rides, petting zoos, corn mazes and camping. It then flags a second group that growing operations add over time: wedding barns, festivals, inflatables, zip lines, ATV and golf cart rentals, haunted houses, and "any activities conducted on or in water" or "near an open flame."
Rung 1: Lower risk. Farm stand, pick-your-own, guided farm walks, birdwatching, cut-your-own Christmas trees. Main exposures: slips, trips, ladders, insect stings, parking lots.
Rung 2: Moderate risk. School field trips, corn mazes, workshops and classes, food stands, farm stays, camping. You now have children, food and overnight guests on site.
Rung 3: Higher risk. Hayrides, pony and horseback rides, petting zoos, weddings with alcohol, festivals, inflatables. Moving vehicles, animals, crowds and drinking.
Rung 4: Highest risk. Zip lines, ATV rentals, haunted attractions, paintball or anything with firearms, water activities, bonfires. Expect specialist cover, tighter terms, or a polite "no" from some insurers.
Why animals and hayrides sit high on the ladder
Animal contact is not just about kicks and bites. In 2004 and 2005, the CDC documented three E. coli O157:H7 outbreaks linked to petting zoos at fairs and festivals in North Carolina, Florida and Arizona. Together they accounted for 173 cases, and the illnesses mainly hit children (CDC MMWR).
In England in 2009, an outbreak at Godstone Farm, an open farm in Surrey, made 93 people ill. Seventeen children developed the most severe complication, hemolytic uremic syndrome, which attacks the kidneys (Griffin Independent Investigation, UK Health Protection Agency). Lawyers for the families later said they had settled 35 cases for more than £1 million (Farmers Weekly).
And you already know what happened on a hayride in Maine.
The ladder rule: Every time you add a rung, call your agent before you open it, not after. Get the new activity named on your policy in writing. A new attraction that is not on your policy is a business risk you are carrying alone.
If you run rides, read Hoofbeats and Hayrides. For the upper rungs, my guide to visitor safety during high-risk activities walks through the controls underwriters look for.
FREE CHECKLIST: PETTING ZOO & SCHOOL TRIP SAFETY Before you call your insurance agent, get the free 82-point Petting Zoo & School Trip Safety Checklist. It gives you the exact question to ask your agent about visitors who get sick, plus the handwashing, signs, animal health records and waiver checks built on the 2025 Arizona State Fair E. coli outbreak. |
What Agritourism Insurance Costs: Straight Talk, No Fairy Tales
Here is a damaging admission most insurance articles will not make: nobody publishes a reliable national average for agritourism insurance. Not the USDA, not the universities, not the insurers. Any website that gives you one tidy number is guessing.
Why? Because every farm is priced on its own. The Ohio State factsheet says the cost "will depend upon a number of factors", that those factors vary by insurance company, and that "each company has its own risk tolerance."
What we can do is give you honest reference points.
Five real reference points
A general small business benchmark. The Hartford reports that its small business customers pay an average of about $810 a year for standalone general liability, $1,687 for a business owner's policy and $1,032 for workers' compensation. The Hartford itself does not cover agritourism businesses, so treat these as a floor for an ordinary business, not a quote for your farm (The Hartford).
A university budget example. Penn State Extension's break-even example for blueberry pie baking classes sets aside $500 for insurance as a fixed cost, alongside $1,500 of building improvements (Penn State Extension).
A farmer's quote. The Michigan farmer you met earlier put the cost of covering his bread workshops at $3,000.
What legislators thought it was worth. Illinois offered agritourism operators a state tax credit equal to their liability premiums, up to $1,000 a year, for tax years 2022 and 2023. The credit was not extended (Illinois Department of Agriculture). Kansas offers registered operators a credit of 20% of their liability insurance cost (Kansas Department of Commerce).
What operators say. In the 2025 national study, 80% of operators rated the cost and availability of insurance at least somewhat challenging.
The honest picture: a low-risk farm adding a rider to an existing farm policy may pay a few hundred dollars. A farm with animals, rides, events and alcohol can pay many thousands. Where you land depends on the factors below.
What pushes your premium up, and what brings it down
Factor underwriters weigh | Pushes the price up | Brings the price down |
Types of activities | Rides, animals, alcohol, water, fire | Farm stand, u-pick, guided walks |
Number of activities | Many attractions, added mid-season | A short, clearly defined list |
Attendance | Large crowds, festivals | Booked groups with set numbers |
Risks in the land | Ponds, steep slopes, old buildings | Fenced hazards, clear walkways |
Safety practices | No written plan, no training | Written plan, trained staff, inspection logs |
Compliance | Missing permits or signage | Permits, statutory signs, health inspections |
State immunity law | No law, or a weak one | A strong agritourism liability statute |
Revenue and limits | Higher revenue, higher limits | Right-sized limits, higher deductible |
Claims history | Past claims | Clean loss record |
Sources: Ohio State University factsheet; The Hartford; PPIB.
Turn the premium into a cost per visitor
Here is the copywriter's trick for making peace with a premium: divide it by your visitors. Say your premium is $2,400 a year and you welcome 4,000 paying guests. That is 60 cents a head. Build it into your ticket price, and your visitors pay for your protection.
This is a worked example, not a quote. Run your own numbers. If you are still pricing your offer, my breakdown of how much money you can really make from agritourism will help you set prices that carry these costs.
Agritourism Liability Laws: A Shield With Holes in It
"But my state has an agritourism law. I don't need much insurance."
This is the second most expensive sentence in agritourism.
Kansas became the first state to pass an agritourism liability protection law in 2004. By 2019, the National Agricultural Law Center counted 31 states with agritourism immunity laws (National Agricultural Law Center), and a later National Law Review analysis put the figure at 39 or more states with statutes limiting agritourism liability (National Law Review). The center keeps the full text of every state's statute in one place: its compilation of state agritourism statutes.
These laws are good news. They are not a substitute for insurance. Here is why.
1. They only cover "inherent risks"
Most of these laws protect you when a visitor is hurt by a risk that is an inherent part of the activity: uneven ground, animals behaving like animals, the nature of farm equipment. They do not protect you from your own mistakes.
2. Negligence usually breaks the shield
When Florida, Idaho and Oklahoma passed their laws in 2013, Florida's protection fell away for gross negligence. Idaho and Oklahoma went further: protection is lost if the operator or an employee commits any negligent act or omission (National Agricultural Law Center). A worn brake, a broken rail, an untrained teenager on the gate. Any one of them can be argued as negligence.
3. You must follow the rules exactly
Most statutes spell out the exact wording of a warning sign, and where it must be posted. Missouri's required sign reads, in part:
"WARNING: Under Missouri law, there is no liability for an injury or death of a participant in a registered agritourism activity conducted at this registered agritourism location if such injury or death results from the inherent risks of such agritourism activity." (Missouri statute, via NALC)
Missouri's protection also applies only to registered operators. Pennsylvania's Agritourism Activity Protection Act of 2021 goes further and requires visitors to sign a written agreement before they take part (Penn State Extension). Miss a step and the protection may not apply.
4. Immunity is a defense, not a force field
Missouri's statute describes its protection as an affirmative defense. That means you can still be sued. You still need a lawyer to raise the defense and prove you met every condition. That legal bill is exactly what the defense cost cover in your liability policy pays for.
5. Most operators do not even know the rules
A 2026 Penn State report found that nearly 70% of surveyed Pennsylvania operators were unsure whether their state even had an agritourism liability law (Penn State Agritourism Program, via Morning Ag Clips).
All 50 states also have recreational use statutes, but these usually protect landowners who let the public use land free of charge (National Law Review). Charge admission and you may step outside them.
The law plus insurance rule: Use your state's law to lower the odds of losing a lawsuit. Use insurance to pay for the lawsuit itself. You need both. A good agent will also price your policy with your state's law in mind, so post the signs and keep proof that you did.
How to Get Agritourism Insurance Quotes: The 7-Step Process
Most farmers shop for insurance the wrong way. They call one agent, describe the farm in two sentences, and accept the first number. Then they find the gaps when they file a claim.
Do it this way instead.
Step 1: Inventory everything you do, or plan to do
List every visitor activity, the months it runs, expected attendance, ages of visitors, and expected revenue. Include the things you think are too small to mention, like a birthday party in the barn or a bread class. That is exactly what got missed in Michigan.
Step 2: Read your current policy and get answers in writing
Look for exclusions and definitions: business pursuits, commercial activities, animals, communicable disease, liquor, abuse and molestation, and how "insured" and "premises" are defined. Then send your current agent the two-minute test email from earlier.
Step 3: Find agents who actually write agritourism
The Ohio State factsheet notes that not all insurers cover all agritourism activities, and that you should pick an agent with agritourism experience who will take the time to understand your operation. Good places to start:
The farm insurance arm of your state Farm Bureau
Brokers and program managers that specialise in agribusiness or "agritainment"
Fellow operators, your state agritourism association, or NAFDMA International Agritourism Association members
Your county extension office, which often knows who insures local farms
Step 4: Build an underwriting packet
Underwriters reward farms that make their job easy. Put these in one folder:
A farm map showing activity zones, parking, walkways, water, and emergency access
Your activity list from Step 1
Your written safety and emergency plan
Staff training records and inspection logs
Photos of your warning signs and a copy of your visitor agreement or waiver
Vendor contracts and their certificates of insurance
Your claims history, even if it is "none"
If you do not have a plan yet, start with my template on how to write a risk management plan for your agritourism business.
Step 5: Get at least three quotes, on the same terms
Ask every agent to quote the same limits and the same list of activities. Otherwise you are comparing a cheap policy that covers less with an honest one that covers more.
Compare this | Why it matters |
Activities named on the policy | Anything not named may not be covered |
Per occurrence and aggregate limits | The most paid per claim, and per year |
Defense costs inside or outside limits | Inside means legal bills eat your cover |
Occurrence or claims-made form | Decides which year's policy responds |
Deductible | What you pay before the insurer pays |
Exclusions | Animals, liquor, abuse, disease, inflatables |
Medical payments limit | Fast, no-fault payments that calm angry guests |
Insurer's financial strength rating | Whether they can pay a large claim |
Step 6: Ask the hard questions
The Ohio State checklist suggests three that every operator should ask: What experience do you and your company have with agritourism? What is your company's A.M. Best rating? And: "What would happen in ____ situation?" Run real scenarios past the agent:
A child gets E. coli after visiting the petting area. Am I covered?
A wedding guest drinks, drives home and crashes. Am I covered?
My hayride wagon tips on a slope. Which policy pays, farm, auto or liability?
A volunteer is hurt on the corn maze crew. Who covers them?
Listen to how fast and how clearly they answer. That tells you whether you have found a specialist.
Step 7: Bind it, then review it every year
Once you buy, the Ohio State lawyers recommend staying current on premiums, understanding your limits, inspecting the operation regularly, doing an annual walk-through with your agent, and updating the policy whenever you add or drop an activity.
7 Ways to Cut Your Premium and Your Odds of Ever Making a Claim
The best insurance claim is the one you never file. Every step below makes your farm safer, makes you a better risk on paper, and gives you evidence to fight an unfair claim.
1. Write it down
An underwriter cannot see your good intentions. They can see a written safety plan, an emergency response plan, and staff training records. Rutgers' agritourism checklist asks whether you train employees on emergency procedures, keep a farm map of key locations, and keep emergency contacts on hand (Rutgers NJAES). If you can show all three, you are ahead of most farms.
2. Fix the handwashing before you open the petting area
The 2023 Compendium of Measures to Prevent Disease Associated with Animals in Public Settings, published by the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians and the CDC, is the playbook here (NASPHV and CDC, 2023). Its key points:
Washing hands with soap and water is preferred, because hand sanitizers "do not work equally well for all classes of pathogens"
"Do not allow consumption of food or beverages in animal areas"
Children under 5 should not have direct contact with animals likely to carry these pathogens
Build transition areas at the entrance and exit of animal areas, with handwashing stations at the exit
Remember Godstone Farm. The parents said their children washed their hands and used antibacterial gel. It was not enough.
3. Maintain and log every vehicle that carries people
After the Maine hayride crash, prosecutors said the Jeep had numerous safety problems. Keep a maintenance log for every tractor, wagon, truck and cart that carries visitors. Check brakes, hitches, seating and rails before each season, and before each day of operation.
4. Post the signs and use written agreements
If your state has an agritourism law, post the exact statutory sign wording in the places the law requires, and photograph it with a date. Use written visitor agreements or waivers where your state allows them. Be aware that in many places a parent's waiver signed for a child may not hold up in court, so a waiver supports good safety practice; it does not replace it.
5. Make partners carry their own insurance
Caterers, inflatable rental companies, food trucks and event planners should hand you a certificate of insurance naming your farm as an additional insured before they set foot on your property. Their policy should respond first when their activity causes the injury.
6. Separate the business from the family assets
Penn State Extension advises agritourism operators to consider a business entity, such as a limited liability company, as well as insurance. If a claim exceeds your cover, an injured visitor would generally only be able to recover from the assets inside the business entity (Penn State Extension). Talk to a lawyer about structure, and about which assets belong where.
7. Inspect, document, and invite your agent
Walk your property before every season and every big event. Record what you checked, what you fixed and when. Keep an incident report for every injury, even a scraped knee. Then invite your agent for an annual walk-through, as the Ohio State checklist recommends. An agent who has seen your farm can defend your risk to the underwriter.
Underwriter's view: "Show me your logs" is the question that separates a professional operation from a hobby. Logs win renewals, lower premiums, and lawsuits.
Go deeper with these guides from my library:
Farming Outside the U.S.? The Names Change, the Logic Doesn't
Most of the research above is American, because the U.S. publishes the most data on agritourism. But I farm in Malaysia, and many readers of this site farm outside the U.S. too. Here is how to translate it.
Liability to visitors is usually called public liability in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and much of Asia and Africa. It is the same Layer 2 described above.
Food and drink risk is usually called products liability, and is often sold together with public liability.
Cover for your staff is often compulsory. In Great Britain, most employers are required by law to hold employers' liability insurance under the Employers' Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 (UK Health and Safety Executive). Check the equivalent rule wherever you farm.
Animal contact rules are global lessons. The Godstone Farm inquiry in England led to tighter guidance for open farms across the UK. Treat the CDC compendium's handwashing advice as good practice wherever you are.
One more thing for operators outside the U.S. Hotels, tour operators and booking platforms increasingly ask for proof of public liability cover before they send you guests. Having your certificate ready makes you an easy partner to say yes to. If you are building those partnerships, read how your farm can partner with hotels, resorts and tour companies.
The process in this article, from the activity inventory to the three-quote comparison, works in any country. Take it to a local broker who handles farm or tourism business and ask them to walk through it with you.
Your Agritourism Insurance Checklist
Print this. Work through it before your next season.
List every visitor activity, its season, attendance and visitor ages
Email your agent and get written confirmation of what is covered, and at what limit
Close the gaps: product, liquor, auto, workers' compensation, animals, events, abuse and molestation
Decide your limits, and price an umbrella policy
Check your state's agritourism law, post the exact signs, and photograph them
Put written visitor agreements or waivers in place where they are allowed
Require certificates of insurance from every vendor and renter, naming your farm as additional insured
Write your safety and emergency plans, train staff, and keep inspection and vehicle logs
Get three quotes on identical terms and compare them line by line
Book an annual walk-through with your agent, and call them before adding any new activity
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my farm or homeowner's policy cover agritourism visitors?
Often not. Ohio State University's agricultural lawyers state that there is generally no coverage for agritourism activities unless a specific agritourism rider has been added. Get your agent's answer in writing.
Do I need agritourism insurance if I don't charge visitors?
The same factsheet recommends that farmers who offer agritourism activities, "whether or not for pay", consider agritourism insurance. Recreational use laws may protect free access in some situations, but their conditions vary by state.
How much liability coverage should I carry?
There is no single right number. Specialist agritainment policies are commonly written at $2 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate, and an umbrella can add more on top. Your attendance, activities and assets should drive the decision.
Will a waiver protect me?
A waiver helps, especially where your state law requires a written agreement. It does not protect you from your own negligence in most places, and waivers signed for children may not be enforced. Use it with insurance, not instead of it.
Is agritourism insurance tax deductible?
In many countries, insurance for a business is treated as a business expense. Some U.S. states have also offered agritourism insurance tax credits. Confirm the treatment with your accountant.
The Bottom Line
The farms that last are not the ones that never have an accident. They are the ones that planned for one. They named every activity on their policy. They kept the logs. They posted the signs. They made their partners carry their own cover. When the bad day came, it was a bad day, not the end of the farm.
You now know more about agritourism insurance than most operators in your county. Use it.
Your next step: If you are planning or growing an agritourism business, get my free 21-Point Agritourism Blueprint at AgritourismSuccess.com. It is my Agritourism Starter Checklist: 21 points to work through before you open your gate to paying guests, so nothing important gets missed.
P.S. Do the two-minute test today. One email to your agent, listing every activity you run, could be the most valuable thing you do for your farm this year.
This article is general information, not legal or insurance advice. Laws and policy terms vary by state, country and insurer. Speak to a licensed insurance professional and an attorney about your own operation.
Sources
USDA Economic Research Service: 2022 Census of Agriculture agritourism income
Penn State Extension: U.S. agritourism and direct-to-consumer sales census update
Vermont Law School Center for Agriculture and Food Systems: Defining and Regulating Agritourism
Penn State Extension: Legal and regulatory considerations for agritourism in Pennsylvania
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 2022
Hall and Bachelor, Agritourism and Insurance factsheet, Ohio State University, 2019
The Leelanau Ticker: Leelanau farmer calls for stronger liability protections for agritourism
Rutgers NJAES: Agritourism emergency response and liability checklist
CDC MMWR: E. coli O157:H7 outbreaks associated with petting zoos, 2004 and 2005
UK Health Protection Agency: Review of the major outbreak of E. coli O157 in Surrey, 2009
Farmers Weekly: Godstone Farm E. coli victims win £1m payout
CBS Boston / AP: Settlement reached in lawsuit over deadly Halloween hayride
Penn State Extension: Pricing agritourism events and experiences
Illinois Department of Agriculture: Agritourism liability insurance tax credit
Kansas Department of Commerce: Agritourism liability insurance credit
National Agricultural Law Center: Agritourism immunity laws in the United States
National Agricultural Law Center: Three states pass new agritourism liability protection laws
National Agricultural Law Center: Missouri agritourism statute
National Law Review: Limited liability for agritourism destinations
Penn State Extension: Pennsylvania Agritourism Activity Protection Act 27 of 2021
Penn State Extension: Agritourism in Pennsylvania, legal and regulatory issues
UK Health and Safety Executive: Employers' Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969
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