Vacant Land Insurance: Protecting Yourself and Your Investments

By: Connor Hermesch

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2 minute read

Categories: Vacant Land

Landowner standing in agriculture field that he inherited.

Audio summary:

The source material, a podcast transcript, analyzes the significant legal risks faced by owners of vacant or undeveloped land, specifically regarding liability from trespassers. It explains that standard property insurance policies are often insufficient because they exclude or severely limit coverage for uninvited guests, who are legally defined as anyone on the property without permission, even if accidentally. The discussion highlights that a landowner can be held liable for a trespasser's injuries under two standards: "reasonable care" if the owner knows trespassers frequent the area, or the higher bar of "gross negligence" for remote land with hidden, severe, unaddressed hazards. To counter the substantial cost of defending such lawsuits—which is often the main financial threat—the text advocates for specialized vacant land and timberland insurance, which offers robust financial protection and resources like legal safety guides and signage to help owners actively document their lack of negligence.

Published: January 21, 2020

You can do your best to make your property as safe as possible, but dangers can arise in an instant on vacant timberland. That’s why you need to protect yourself and your investments from expensive lawsuits with Vacant Land Liability Insurance. While most insurance policies will cover a landowner from liability against a Licensee or an Invitee, very few policies will cover a landowner against Trespassers.

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Timberland liability insurance differs from other types of liability insurance in several ways including coverages and protections against lawsuits from an individual trespassing on your property. Yes, even if a person enters your property uninvited, you may still be liable if they are injured while on your land. There are two notable examples of when a landowner is liable for the safety of trespassers. One, is if a landowner is aware that there are trespassers on their land, they must take a reasonable amount of care to ensure the safety of their land. The other instance is if a landowner has no knowledge of trespassers, the landowner is only responsible for their gross negligence in the event a hazard exists that should be removed. Some states have laws regarding liability of trespassers, but that doesn’t stop the trespassers from bringing a frivolous and expensive lawsuit against you.

As most landowners know, trespassers are all but inevitable when it comes to private land. So, who counts as a trespasser according to Timberland Liability Insurance? The answer is as simple as you think, any individual who accidentally or purposefully steps foot on your land without your permission is counted as a trespasser. This could be neighbors who wander on to your land while hiking or hunting or even strangers lost in the woods while tracking a deer, if anyone injures themselves on your property and perceive you to be at fault Timberland Liability Insurance is there to protect your investments.

In any and all of these scenarios, The American Hunting Lease Association is here to defend the assets of landowners from lawsuits brought by licensees, invitees, as well as trespassers.

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Author: Connor Hermesch

Connor is the Marketing Manager for American Hunting Lease Association and has been with them for over 5 years. Connor lives in Indiana and enjoys the outdoors whether it's fishing, riding his quad or sitting around the campfire. When not working or outdoors, you can find him rooting for his sports teams.

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