crime fighting now pays even more

Farm Bureau, Nationwide increase reward for apprehending criminals; new signs available

by Dan Toland

Reporting suspicious activity in your neighborhood could put $2,500 in your pocket as part of an Ohio Farm Bureau Federation program – $1,000 more than previously.

For more than 20 years, Ohio Farm Bureau has offered a property protection reward to Farm Bureau members and nonmembers who provide information that leads to the arrest and conviction of people who commit arson, malicious injury to property, burglary and other felonies on a member’s property. It is also paid for information leading to the arrest and conviction of persons stealing an Ohio Farm Bureau member’s car, truck, tractor or self-propelled equipment. It does not apply for the conviction of a misdemeanor, and the immediate family of the Farm Bureau member is not eligible to receive rewards for crimes impacting that member.

Effective Jan. 1, Ohio Farm Bureau, in conjunction with Nationwide Insurance, boosted the reward from $1,500 to $2,500. Last year, citizens received the reward for their actions that led to the recovery of a stolen miniature horse and the arrest of golf course vandals and a house burglar.

“Think of the amount of neighbors keeping an eye on your property when they know there is a $2,500 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction of a crime,” said Scott Donaldson, Ohio Farm Bureau’s director of member programming.

New signs and stickers are available at county Farm Bureau offices, as well as reward applications, which are required to receive the money. For farm families, resource packets provided by Nationwide Agribusiness are available with the signs. Nationwide is the largest insurer of farms and farmer-owned cooperatives in the United States.

“A normal security company isn’t going to look out for you as much for the same price” as a Farm Bureau membership, said Donaldson, noting that new members are currently eligible for a low introductory rate of $35.

“The $2,500 reward program is not only valuable to our members as a crime deterrent, but it is also special because of its long history,” said Dan Rapp, Ohio Farm Bureau’s senior director of business development. “The signs have become a widely recognized fixture in rural Ohio that our members are proud to display. Ohio Farm Bureau members are good neighbors, and we look out for each other.”

The reward program is just one of several member benefits that can help owners protect their homes and property. Homeowners and renters insurance from Nationwide Insurance and Ohio Farm Bureau legislative efforts on trespassing and ATV laws are just a few examples of how Farm Bureau works to protect its members and their property.

Learn more about becoming a Farm Bureau member at GrowWithFB.org

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