Australian Agribusiness Elders has said that it would be “very open” to increasing its stake in Elders Insurance Underwriting Agency (EIUA).
Last week,
the Australian business announced that it he repurchased 10% of the underwriting agency in a deal with
QBE after the underwriter was
sold to the insurer in 2014.
Mark Allison, managing director of Elders told
Stock and Land that the business would be open tp upping its stake in the underwriter that was sold to clear debt.
"Of all the divestments Elders had to make to rid ourselves of debt, offloading Elders Insurance was the most painful to me," Allison said.
"We have a strong relationship with QBE and don't expect that to change, although if it was appropriate that they wanted to discuss changing current arrangements, I think we'd be very open to increasing our stake.”
With crop insurance currently making headlines as the Australian Government recently announced a $20 million rebate plan to help drive insurance in the sector, Allison said he was still unsure about the future of multi-peril crop coverage.
"I'm not sure where the multi-peril insurance agenda will end up in Australia because we don't have access to the sort of underwriting power provided by government in the US," Allison continued.
With plant and livestock risks ever increasing, Allison said that farmers across the country are becoming more aware of the benefits of insurance and more financially transparent as the importance of their business is hammered home.
"Most family farms are adopting much greater professional financial transparency as part of their planning," Allison said.
"It's not just your farm income at stake if something goes wrong.
"Given the price of livestock these days, that represents a lot of capital which has to be replaced somehow."
