The blog posting below was published on our sister blog, Grains of Knowledge. I thought it would be prudent to share this topic on our own Risk Factors blog as many of our customers include agribusiness accounts and other similar businesses that may use tractors in their day to day operations. Thanks to Stacey for the great post! Enjoy! ~ Lisa Mundt
Do you have ROPS in place to protect you?
One statistic the state of Pennsylvania is not proud of is the large number of tractor rollover fatalities. Between the years 2000-2008, over 55 farm-related tractor rollover deaths occurred in Pennsylvania alone. One in 10 farmers will overturn a tractor in their lifetime, and one in seven farmers who are involved in a tractor rollover are permanently disabled. And experience alone is not enough to protect you; an alarming 80 percent of tractor rollovers happen to highly experienced tractor operators.
So how can you avoid these statistics and be safe and secure in your tractor? How can you be assured that neither you nor your workers will succumb to a tractor accident?
ROPS is here to help! ROPS stands for Rollover Protective Structure. ROPS is a rebate program that will provide up to 70% of the cost to purchase and install the protective equipment that prevents tractor rollovers. ROPS are designed to limit tractor roll by 90 degrees. If a tractor doesroll, it will not roll on its side. The combination of seat belts and ROPS is 99% effective in preventing rollover deaths.
The Westfield Insurance Foundation is a proud supporter of this program and recently donated $15,000 to the Pennsylvanis State University for Rollover Protective Structures Retrofit Program for Pennsylvania Farmers (PA ROPS).
If you’d like more information on ROPS in PA, please visit this website:
http://ropsr4u.com/pa/overview/or call the ROPS hotline: 1-877-ROPS-R4U or 1-877-767-7748
Stacey Bruce is a region leader for the small/speciality segment of Westfield's Agribusiness Division based out of Westfield Center, Ohio, the corporate headquarters of Westfield Insurance.
