Farming in the UK is changing fast. With traditional subsidies fading and climate volatility increasing, rural businesses are diversifying like never before. For specialist brokers, that shift brings both complexity and opportunity.
“Nearly all farms recognise that they need to diversify in order to sustain their business,” said Oliver Burns (pictured), sales director at County Insurance Services and a veteran farm insurance broker. “But after doing the same things for 20, 30, 40 years, the risks that come with something like a farm café or glamping site can feel completely alien.”
Burns, who grew up in England’s smallest county, Rutland, saw his father work as an NFU group secretary and after joining the industry himself in 2010, took on the same role. After time with NFU Mutual, he moved to County Insurance, where he now focuses on both core agricultural and allied rural trades.
The growth in on-farm enterprises, from artisan distilleries to renewable energy and event venues, is reshaping the insurance landscape. Yet many traditional farm insurers have been slow to respond.
“Insurers used to take the whole farm risk,” Burns said. “Now we’re seeing them say, ‘We like 80% of what you’ve shown us, but that 20% – the glamping, the café – you’ll need to place elsewhere.’”
This fragmentation poses a challenge. “Trying to marry two insurers: one who’ll exclude farming, one who’ll exclude diversification, is incredibly difficult,” he said. “It often requires deep relationships and an understanding of multiple commercial product lines to find a workable solution.”
Some MGAs are stepping up. Burns pointed to providers that offer bundled coverage across departments like fleet, D&O, and commercial combined. “That makes a big difference. It’s a far cry from the traditional composite insurers who are limited in what they offer to anything non-farming.”
As farm businesses digitize, whether through GPS-enabled tractors or cloud-based accounting, cyber risk is emerging as another blind spot.
“There’s no cyber product specifically designed for farmers,” Burns said. “Even small farms that just use a mobile phone are vulnerable. We need to treat cyber like public liability – as a basic hygiene factor.”
He’s seen promising lower-cost policies from insurers like Aviva, but added that pricing remains a hurdle for many rural clients. “Market leaders might have the right product, but at £1,200 minimum premiums, it’s out of reach.”
Meanwhile, extreme weather is reinforcing the need for comprehensive property and business interruption cover. “Flooding is now almost inevitable,” Burns said. “But crop insurance doesn’t really exist unless it's part of a state-sponsored system, like in the US”
Farmers, he said, are part of the climate solution. “They understand it. But right now, insurance doesn’t reflect that awareness or offer innovative products around climate resilience.”
With over 90% of his personal client base now engaged in some form of diversification, Burns sees clear patterns. “Only about 10 of my clients are doing pure farming,” he said. “Everyone else is doing something – selling eggs, hosting open days, letting properties.”
That evolution demands a new kind of broker: one who can speak the language of commercial risk, educate clients on emerging threats, and assemble tailored solutions across multiple lines.
Burns believes the market is moving in the right direction, albeit slowly. “As we enter a softer market, I hope we start to see more innovation and a joined-up approach,” he said. “We need to release some of that capital to fund the specialist covers farmers now require.
“Show flexibility, educate your underwriters, and design products that reflect the modern farm,” Burns said.
