Our Top 12 Tips for Acreage Accuracy

Few steps in the crop insurance process are more critical than acreage reporting. With the reporting deadlines for major crops approaching, ProAg wanted to provide a helpful Top 12 list—our most important steps toward ensuring an accurate acreage report.

  1. Verify unit structure/unit numbering, legal descriptions and share arrangements.
  2. Verify area classifications (map areas) are applicable for the crop/state/county and confirm the correct map area is listed, if applicable to the policy.
  3. For any acreage flagged as added land or new practice/type/T-Yield map area (TMA), verify all added land requirements have been met per the Crop Insurance Handbook.
  4. Verify late planted acreage was reported daily with the applicable plant date(s).
  5. Verify prevented planting (PP) acreage to ensure appropriate guidelines were followed. Verify an initial acreage report was submitted and separate line entries were reported on the acreage report for PP acres eligible for 100% of the PP payment and acreage limited to 35% of the PP payment.
  6. Verify a contract has been attached or submitted for all applicable contract crops.
  7. Verify if a high-risk land exclusion option is in place.
  8. Verify new breaking ground has been reported by common land unit and the FSA farm number (FN)/tract/field ID is included on the acreage report.
  9. If both the supplemental coverage option (SCO) endorsement and agricultural risk coverage (ARC) are elected, verify the acreage report clearly identifies which acreage/FN(s) of the crop is covered by ARC, the acreage has been reported by FSA farm/tract/field number by the acreage reporting date and has been identified with the acre-age type of J (ineligible SCO acres due to ARC election).
  10. If both the SCO endorsement and stacked income protection plan (STAX) have been elected, verify the insured meets the eligibility requirements for both requirements. If eligibility requirements are met, verify the acreage report clearly identities which acreage/FN(s) are being covered under the SCO Endorsement and which acreage/FN(s) are being covered under STAX.
  11. Verify the Power of Attorney is on file if applicable.
  12. Verify insured’s and agent’s printed and signed names are included on the acreage report, and the acreage report is dated by the applicable acreage reporting date.