Inertia in the U.S. federal crop insurance market

Abstract

We document significant inertia in farmers' crop insurance choices using a large panel of farm insurance records. Farmers often retain their previous year's plans, even after substantial shocks. We quantify inertia as the cost of switching plans in a discrete choice framework, incorporating an inertia indicator along with plan-specific attributes such as premiums, subsidies, and expected indemnities. These attributes are constructed based on individual farm characteristics. Our analysis estimates the average switching cost at approximately $10.9 per acre, comparable to the average per-acre premium for the yield insurance plan (APH) at 65% coverage and the revenue insurance plan (CRC) at 55% coverage. Explicit and implicit switching costs, information friction, and inattention contribute to this inertia.