Smallholding has increased to the extent that an insurance company has launched a specialist insurance cover.

Standard home insurance may not cover the risks that smallholders encounter so NFU Mutual has created a dedicated package.

Chris Walsh a farm insurance specialist for the company said: “While running a smallholding is many people’s dream of a perfect lifestyle, it also brings risks of huge costs if things go wrong. Animals can stray onto roads and cause accidents, for which their owners can be held responsible; livestock can become seriously ill; or produce sold to the public can cause problems.

“In addition, smallholders’ tools and equipment – tractors, mowers, chainsaws and the like - are expensive pieces of kit which are at risk of being stolen from sheds and outbuildings.

NFU Mutual’s smallholder insurance is designed for people whose smallholdings generate an income of up to £10,000.