Insurance claims denied as companies grapple with dicamba injury

There was no question what was to blame for the curled soybeans on the central Illinois farm in late June. The farmer, the neighbor who made the application, even the investigator from the neighbor's insurance company, all agreed. Off-target dicamba movement was the culprit.Yet the letter the injured farmer received months later from the insurance company was quite clear: "We do not find any negligence on the part of our insured and are respectfully denying your claim." The company concluded that the dicamba damage had occurred from volatility -- a factor beyond the applicator's control -- and that fault lay with the product, not the application of it.DTN acquired copies of these letters, but because of the sensitivity of the situation, allowed the sources to remain anonymous.The dicamba injury crisis of 2017 has forced many farmers and applicators to delve more deeply into the world of liability insurance, full of confusing language and important legal implications.