September 30, 2020 Deadline to Purchase Hurricane Insurance Protection (HIP) Crop Insurance

By Brian Breaux

Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation

Louisiana sugarcane producers have until Wednesday, September 30, 2020 if they would like to purchase the new Hurricane Insurance Protection (HIP) – Wind Index crop insurance policy for the 2021 crop year. 

The HIP crop insurance policy is an endorsement to a producer’s existing buy-up crop insurance policy and a producer must have underlying buy-up coverage.  Therefore, producers must have a minimum buy-up crop insurance coverage level of at least 50% yield, 100% price coverage to be able to purchase HIP. 

The RMA Fact Sheet on the HIP Policy states, “The full value of the HIP-WI Endorsement is paid if a county, or adjacent county, is within the area of sustained hurricane-force winds from a named hurricane based on data published by the National Hurricane Center. The counties (parishes) where payments occur will be identified in the actuarial documents”.  The amount of the indemnity paid out under the HIP-WI crop insurance endorsement depends partially on the buy-up coverage level of the underlying coverage.

Below is the list of 27 Parishes that triggered for HIP- WI crop insurance indemnities from Hurricane Laura. These Parishes were either impacted by sustained Hurricane force winds for 3 minutes or longer or the Parish listed was adjacent to a Hurricane impacted parish.

State – Louisiana 

Acadia Allen Avoyelles Beauregard Caldwell Cameron

Claiborne DeSoto Evangeline Grant Iberia Jackson

Jefferson Davis Lafayette LaSalle Lincoln Natchitoches Quachita

Rapides Red River Sabine St. Landry Union Vermillion

Vernon Webster Winn

Several sugarcane producing parishes are included in the HIP-WI triggered parishes. However, since Hurricane Laura hit so far west in Cameron and Calcasieu Parishes, many Louisiana sugarcane parishes did not trigger for HIP-WI indemnities. However, in the days ahead, if sustained Hurricane force winds are found by NOAA to have impacted any portion of parishes further east, it is possible that additional HIP-WI eligible parishes could be triggered from Hurricane Laura.  

If you are interested in purchasing Hurricane Insurance Protection – Wind Index crop insurance coverage for the 2021 crop year for sugarcane, please contact your crop insurance agent before the Sept. 30 deadline.