How to understand that the enthusiasm of farmers participating in agricultural insurance is increasing year by year

Agricultural insurance is a "green box" policy that WTO allows countries to support agriculture. It is one of the three pillars of modern agricultural development under the condition of market economy, and it is also an important tool to deal with agricultural risk transfer. Since 2004, China has established a policy-oriented agricultural insurance system and carried out pilot projects. In 2007, the central finance began to implement premium subsidies for agricultural insurance. In 2012, China promulgated the Regulations on Agricultural Insurance. At present, the scale of agricultural insurance in China ranks second in the world. A few days ago, China Insurance Society released "China Agricultural Insurance Market Demand Survey Report," our reporter interviewed Yao Qinghai, president of China Insurance Society.

Farmers 'enthusiasm for participating in insurance has increased year by year

Reporter: In the event of a major disaster, agricultural insurance has played a positive role in restoring production. So what is the enthusiasm of farmers to participate in insurance at present, and what measures are there to encourage farmers to participate in agricultural insurance?

Yao Qinghai: In major disasters such as drought in Northeast China in 2009, flood in Beijing in 2012 and severe flood in Heilongjiang Province in 2013, agricultural insurance effectively dispersed the operation risks of farmers, and the insured farmers obtained real benefits. The awareness of agricultural insurance became higher and higher, and the enthusiasm for participating in insurance increased year by year. The number of insured farmers and the insured area are increasing year by year.

At present, there are mainly the following measures to encourage farmers to participate in insurance: First, improve the degree of security. Increase the existing insurance amount to close to or basically close to the actual planting cost, and gradually include the land rent cost and labor cost. At the same time, actively set up crop planting cost insurance, actively set up yield insurance, price index insurance and other new types of insurance. The second is to expand the coverage of agricultural insurance. In addition to offering insurance for bulk grain and oil crops, insurance for major livestock products and forest insurance subsidized by the central government, we will vigorously develop housing, agricultural machinery and equipment, facility agriculture and other products. Third, broaden the service field. Agricultural insurance will be extended to rural finance, and agricultural insurance will be actively combined with rural financial means such as agricultural credit.

The insurance company entrusts the agricultural department to co-organize specific agricultural insurance business

Reporter: Agricultural insurance involves many links such as product design, insurance coverage, premium payment, loss assessment and compensation. Then the government department involves the agricultural department, insurance supervision department and financial department, while the main body of activities includes farmers, farmers 'professional cooperatives, leading enterprises and insurance companies. What cooperation mechanism can ensure the smooth implementation of agricultural insurance projects?

Yao Qinghai: In terms of organizational structure, the Agricultural Insurance Regulations make clear provisions on the construction of agricultural insurance system. Specifically,"the insurance supervision and administration department of the State Council shall supervise and administer the agricultural insurance business." The relevant departments of finance, agriculture, forestry, development and reform, taxation and civil affairs of the State Council shall be responsible for the promotion and management of agricultural insurance according to their respective duties. Finance, insurance supervision and administration, land and resources, agriculture, forestry, meteorology and other relevant departments and institutions shall establish a sharing mechanism for agricultural insurance-related information. Local people's governments at or above the county level shall exercise unified leadership over, organize and coordinate agricultural insurance work in their respective administrative areas, and establish and improve working mechanisms for promoting the development of agricultural insurance.

In terms of business operation, in view of the characteristics of scattered agricultural insurance subject matter and low degree of farmer organization, insurance companies generally entrust local agricultural departments to assist in handling agricultural insurance underwriting fees, risk reporting, survey and loss determination, claim cashing and other businesses. And according to the agreement of both parties, the insurance company shall pay a certain proportion of the co-financing expenses.

Q: Can farmers buy their own agricultural insurance? What are the precautions?

Yao Qinghai: For family farms, large professional households, individual farmers can directly insure with local insurance companies. For other farmers, the village committee generally acts as the insurance organizer to organize local farmers to carry out insurance. Farmers should pay attention to the following aspects when taking out insurance:

One is to pay insurance premiums to village cadres according to the insured area; the second is to provide bank card (fold) number for later disaster claims; the third is to review the insurance information and sign and confirm on the Insurance Schedule; the fourth is to keep the insurance policy or insurance certificate issued by the insurance company.

Agricultural insurance breeding varieties reached 15 central financial subsidies covering the whole country

Reporter: How many varieties of agricultural insurance are there at present, and how much subsidy is provided by the central finance?

Yao Qinghai: At present, the varieties of agricultural insurance premium subsidies provided by the central finance include corn, rice, wheat, cotton, potato, oil crops, sugar crops, breeding sows, dairy cows, fattening pigs, natural rubber, forest, highland barley, Tibetan sheep, yak, etc., totaling 15. For crop insurance, the central finance subsidizes 40 per cent in the central and western regions, 35 per cent in the eastern regions, 65 per cent in the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, reclamation areas directly under the central government, the Central Grain Reserve Northern Company and the China Agricultural Development Group Corporation (hereinafter referred to as the central unit), and at least 25 per cent in the provincial finance. For the insurance of breeding sows, dairy cows and fattening pigs, the central finance shall subsidize 50% in the central and western regions, 40% in the eastern regions, 80% in the central units and at least 30% in the local finance. For public welfare forest insurance, the central finance subsidizes 50%, the Daxinganling Forestry Group Company subsidizes 90%, the local finance subsidizes at least 40%, for commercial forest insurance, the central finance subsidizes 30%, the Daxinganling Forestry Group Company subsidizes 55%, and the local finance subsidizes at least 25%. The central financial agricultural insurance premium subsidy policy covers the whole country, and local governments can be independent.

Reporter: The premium subsidy of the state finance is part of the national policy of strengthening agriculture and benefiting agriculture, but it is directly allocated to insurance companies. How to ensure the effective and fair use of financial funds?

Yao Qinghai: The premium subsidies from the state and local governments at all levels are premium subsidies for insured farmers, not subsidies to insurance companies. Their purpose is to reduce the premium burden of insured farmers. In order to ensure the effective use of premium subsidy funds, the Ministry of Finance issued the Measures for the Administration of Insurance Premium Subsidies for Crop Production by the Central Finance and the Measures for the Administration of Insurance Premium Subsidies for Animal Husbandry by the Central Finance, which clearly stipulated the budget, allocation and management of premium subsidy funds. Every year, agricultural insurance supervision departments around the country inspect the management of premium subsidy funds in accordance with relevant regulations.

Publicity, return visits, and "zero cash" claims ensure fairness in loss assessment while preventing fraud

Reporter: In insurance claims, a very important link is loss assessment. Well, in the process of agricultural insurance, is there any mechanism to ensure the fairness of loss assessment and at the same time prevent fraud?

Yao Qinghai: In order to prevent the occurrence of false underwriting and false claims, the main systems currently implemented are publicity, return visit, and "zero cash" compensation system. On the one hand, after the survey and loss assessment work is completed and before the compensation is issued, the insurance publicity shall publicize the claim settlement results of each insured farmer household, including the name of the farmer household, the insured area, the affected area, the loss degree, the compensation amount and other information, in a prominent position in the village for more than 7 days. Mobilize farmers to supervise each other and deal with problems reflected by farmers in a timely manner. On the other hand, after the claim settlement work is completed, according to the relevant regulations of the supervision department, the insurance company shall make telephone and household return visit according to a certain proportion of the claim settlement farmers, and find and solve the problems existing in the claim settlement through the return visit. On the other hand, the insurance company adopts the "zero cash" method to transfer the compensation into the passbook (card) of the insured disaster-stricken farmers, so as to effectively avoid the problem of interception, appropriation and misappropriation of the compensation.