Farmers in WA have called for a multi-peril crop insurance scheme following severe weather that has obliterated some harvests.

WA Farmers Senior VP and Grain Council President Derek Clauson told insuranceNEWS.com.au there is a need to extend existing hail and fire cover to mitigate the risk of frost and drought.

Severe frost damage across the WA Wheatbelt has combined with summer storms to wreck crops in southern areas.

“I would like to see multi-peril insurance fit within the hail and fire insurance framework,” Mr Clauson said. “If we can fit those perils in there and it is presented in the right way there would be an obligation for farmers to join – they’d be silly not to.”

He wants a working group established to investigate a viable system of multi-peril insurance that he says could be applied nationally. Government backing would probably be necessary to support the scheme.

But the concept is likely to prove difficult to implement. A previous WA Government review found multi-peril insurance unviable, and a leading crop insurance provider who declined to be named told insuranceNEWS.com.au a multi-peril scheme isn’t likely to appeal to private insurers.

“It’s a classic selection problem for insurers,” he said. “When things are going well and growers have good forecasts they can’t see a need to pay a premium. When things go bad they want the product.”

“Growers have shown a reluctance to participate in the long term to make it viable.”