One of the country's largest agricultural insurers says it has paid out $8 million in claims for haystack fires in the past five years.An RFS officer says haystack fires take a financial and emotional toll on farmersWFI Insurance executive general manager Andrew Beer said the number of claims his company received depended on the season and the amount of hay baled.
Bland Temora Rural Fire Service group officer Mark Hoskinson said haystack fires took a massive toll on farmers. The study involving Charles Sturt University , the Food Agility CRC, WFI Insurance parent company Insurance Australia Group, and technology company Myriota examined the hay quality and conditions inside the stack.