Cape Town - Hundreds of South African farmers have rushed to insure their property in the wake of violent protests in which vineyards, storerooms and machinery have been destroyed, it was reported on Sunday.
The Weekend Argus reported that damage estimated at more than R100m was caused by striking farmworkers in the Western Cape in the past month.
Many of the targeted farmers were insured only for damage against natural causes, such as fire or hail.
The insurance companies Santam and Mutual & Federal had apparently been inundated with calls from farmers asking for unrest insurance through the SA Special Risks Insurance Association (Sasria), to be added to their policies.
Mutual & Federal's agricultural manager Andries Wiese told the newspaper: "We're getting an incredible number of calls. Fifty percent of our calls come from farmers saying they slipped up and need to make it right by getting Sasria unrest insurance."