Where there is a will, there is a way forward
The rate of fatal and serious accidents in farming is very high, when you consider the numbers employed. Children are particularly at risk.
Work-related deaths are part of life, no matter the amount of regulation or degree of safety measures taken.
Farming is unique, because many farmers are self-employed and work long hours, involving physical labour, heavy machinery, chemicals and moving machinery.
The family home is normally located on the farm, and often there are no physical boundaries between the home and the farm. Children are off from school in the summer and naturally wish to be out in the fresh air.
A farmer has many roles to fill, and more often than not, cannot delegate work to others. Help may not be readily at hand when something goes wrong.
The farming situation is unique and, in my opinion, that is unlikely to change anytime soon.
Nobody thinks a farming accident will happen to them or their family. But every victim is someone’s parent, child or sibling. Sometimes it is not until you see the people who were affected or hear someone’s story that the statistics are brought to life.
Liam Rohan was a popular and highly respected dairy farmer from Shanahoe, Co Laois, whom his son, Brian, describes as “one of the most careful men going” who “ran a model safe farm”.
Liam Rohan was well known in farming circles, having represented Ireland in the World Ploughing Championships. He started ploughing in 1959, when he won his first title, the All-Ireland under-21. He went on to win many All-Ireland titles. He represented Ireland four times as a competitor.
At their farm in 2012, in the span of a few minutes, events played out that left a family absolutely devastated.
Brian was in partnership with his father, and on Tuesday, his father was on the farm as usual. There was a lot of work to do, and he started dismantling a silage swarther and was removing a bolt over his head, when it came out more quickly than he anticipated, releasing a rotor which hit him on the side of the head. He died three days later. Liam Rohan was 74 years of age.
Liam’s family received much support from the local community after the death. But Brian soon realised that there was little or no emotional, legal, financial and practical support for families who lost loved ones through farm accidents.
Brian said that his case was relatively straightforward, as he was in partnership with his father, but he still experienced difficulties in relation to single farm payments.
What if a farmer dies without leaving a Will?
How can a farm run, if the next of kin cannot gain access to bank accounts, basic payments, entitlements, etc?
When someone passes away unexpectedly, and the appropriate paperwork and safeguards have not been put in place, it can make running a farming business very difficult, almost impossible.
When the person who owns, runs and manages the farm passes away unexpectedly, it can greatly add to the trauma and pain if provisions are not put in place to deal with such an event.
One piece of advice I would give to every farmer in the country is to make a will. Let’s face it, we are all going to die, and nobody knows when.
Do not put it off. If you wish to make a change to your will later, you can easily do so.
If a single person makes a will prior to marriage, the will is revoked by the marriage. It is critical to review your will periodically, especially after you marry, have children, enter into partnership, transfer land, etc.
If you die without leaving a will, your estate will be divided according to the rules of intestacy. For example, if you die leaving a spouse and children, two thirds of your estate will pass to your spouse and the remaining one third will be divided between your children in equal shares.
If you are not married, and have no children, your estate will be divided between your parents in equal shares. If your parents are dead, it will pass to your brothers and sisters in equal shares.
If you are unmarried and living with a partner with whom you share children, you should make a will. If you do not make a will, the farm will not pass to the person or persons who you would like to receive it. By making a will, you will ensure that your wishes are carried out.
It is important to also specifically mention in your will who is to inherit the payment entitlements. As the law stands at present, payment entitlements are attached to the farmer, not to the land. If it is your wish to have the payment entitlements pass to the family member who is to inherit the farm, you should state this expressly in your will. Otherwise the payment entitlements could end up in the residue of your will, and could pass to someone who has no involvement with the farm whatsoever.
Another piece of advice I would give to farmers is that they should execute an enduring power of attorney (EPA). This is a legal document which only takes effect in the event that the person becomes mentally incapacitated.
The person creating the EPA is known as the donor, and in the event of his or her becoming incapacitated, power to deal with the donor’s money and assets transfer to the attorney. It becomes operative only if you become incapable of looking after your affairs, and it continues in force until death.
By planning ahead and making an EPA, you are able to give your instructions whilst you are of sound mind.
If someone becomes incapacitated through disability or illness as a result of a farming accident, their assets become frozen. Bank accounts, payment entitlements, land and other assets that are in the farmer’s sole name cannot easily be dealt with. As the law currently stands, if an EPA has not been executed, an application must be made to the High Court to make the person a ward of court, which is an expensive and time-consuming process.
A farm cannot run without access to funds, and it is essential that provisions are put in place as soon as possible to deal with such a tragedy occurring. How does a family survive if the sole provider dies, and all accounts are in his or her sole name?
Another practical thing to do here would be to consider having one bank account in the joint names of you and your spouse, if you are not in partnership, to ensure that there is some access to funds to run the farm until the estate has been administered. If accounts are in the sole name of the person who has died, a bank will not release funds until a grant of probate has issued to the estate. The assets are frozen until then.
