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OFBF members who insure their farms with Nationwide now have more flexibility in deciding when to pay their premiums.

Besides the option of paying 100 percent of the amount up front, Nationwide’ s Flex Pay Plan lets policyholders choose to pay in minimum monthly installments or in larger lump sums during the year. The purpose is to allow members more flexibility in coordinating their insurance payments with the cash flow of their farms.

Here’s how the Flex Pay Plan works: If you make an initial down payment instead of paying the entire premium, the remaining premium is divided by the remaining number of months left to be billed, up to nine months.

Your first bill will arrive about two weeks before the due date. It will ask for a minimum monthly amount.

Let’s say you have strong cash flow that month and decide to pay in excess of the minimum amount but less than the total balance. Your payment in excess of the minimum will be applied to the minimum due for your next billing cycle. If your excess payment is enough to pay your next billing cycle, you won’t be billed for that month. For example, if you double your minimum payment in a given month, you will skip your next month’s billing cycle.

You can maintain flexibility in how much and when you pay for your farm insurance by paying the minimum monthly amount, a small excess above the minimum, or a larger excess amount.

If you prefer to pay monthly minimums, you may want to sign up for Flex Chek, an automatic payment feature that deducts payments from your checking account and eliminates the need to write checks or worry about timely payments. Handling charges are covered by a small fee ($2 for Flex Chek payments, $5 other installment payments) added to each installment payment. You also have the option of making payments by credit card, or taking your payments to your agent’s office.

If you want to make changes in your policy during the year such as replacing a vehicle or adjusting coverage amounts, your premium amount will probably change as well. The change in premium will be divided among the remaining installment billings and appear on your next bill.

To learn more about the Flex Pay Plan or to enroll, call 888-335-1134, or contact your Nationwide agent.