NCFB Joining Industry Effort to Combat Equipment Theft

North Carolina Farm Bureau Insurance Group (NCFB) reported that it has become the first Farm Bureau insurance company to join a number of commercial insurers who support the National Equipment Register (NER), an industry initiative to combat farm and construction equipment theft.

NER has developed national databases containing millions of detailed equipment theft and ownership records and provides a 24 hour police hotline, staffed by equipment experts, to help officers identify stolen equipment and link it to the true owner – usually an insurance company.

Todd Childers, Property Claims manager of NCFB explained that “we have already had some success with NER but it is clear that a formal relationship will allow us to increase recovery rates and allow our claims adjusters, risk managers and policyholders to take full advantage of NER’s services and expertise.”

David Shillingford, president of NER noted that “since 2001 we have helped police recover millions of dollars of equipment for insurance companies whilst at the same time building a mechanism that is shifting the advantage away form equipment thieves. A large part of our success is attributed to the insurers who support our efforts and we are proud to be working with NCFB.”