One farmer’s story of a bumpy day and how he kept the wheels turning.

Accidents on the farm are never ideal, but they’re often inevitable. 

With deadlines to hit, stock to manage, and paddocks that don’t plough themselves, there’s never a good time for your gear to be out of action.

Toby knows this all too well. One evening, after a full day’s work, he parked up his tractor and trailer, only for a mate’s truck to back into them. The force of the hit jolted the trailer forward into the tractor, smashing the PTO and leaving the whole setup unusable.

There’s not a lot of time for stress on a farm, but in that moment, Toby was stuck. Tractors aren’t exactly something you can do without when things are moving fast. Replacements are pricey. Payments take time. And nobody’s got hours to waste.

Luckily, Toby’s story didn’t stop there. His policy included something called a Loss of Use Benefit, basically, cover that kicks in when your vehicle can’t be used, even if it wasn’t your fault. He was able to hire a tractor straight away, get back to work, and then recover the cost through his insurance.

These kinds of policies don’t just cover crashes. They’re designed to reduce downtime because for farmers, standing still isn’t an option.

This particular claim is real, though we’ve changed a few details to protect the people involved.

Every year, around 30% of farm commercial motor vehicles are claimed on, and the average cost for non-windscreen damage sits at about $5850.

While most people think of these policies as protection for big crashes, the benefits stretch much further—helping farmers stay productive even when things go off track.

Some of those added protections can include:

• Cover for borrowed vehicles
• Rental vehicle costs
• Tyre damage
• Entanglement cover (think PTOs and wire fences)

Worth having a yarn with your broker about what’s in your current policy? Could save you a major headache down the track.