Owners Who Share Their Horse

NoviceNic

NoviceNic

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May 7, 2003
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Can I ask owners advise please on what would happen if in the event the sharer injured the horse or the horse became ill whilst on their share time, how would you expect the vet bill be paid??

Not making myself very clear here am I...:eek:

If the horse was injured or became ill whilst the sharer was riding or grooming etc, would you split the vet bill with the sharer or would you expect the sharer to be fully responsible for the cost?? And how have you worded this in your share agreement? :confused:
 
I've never thought about this before, I share someone elses horse

presumably I would claim on my rider insurance and use that to pay the vet bills

However saying that when the horse has gone lame before (whilst I was riding :eek:) she didn't ask for any money towards that :confused:

I must ask her next time I speak to her
 
hmm, it really depends on the situation. if i was riding my share horse and she just slipped and injured herself I would kind of expect the owners insurance to pay the vets bills, i might offer some money if there was an excess to pay but really the horse is the owners responsability and the same thing could of happened while they were riding.

however, if i had put my horse in danger or tried to get it to do something it couldnt, or do something i was told not to (ie canter up the road, take it XC when it cant jump ect) then I would expect to either pay the vets bills or get my insurance to.
 
In the agreement I've prepared for my horse who is to be loaned by someone at the yard where I have my other horses, I've said:

"if an injury is caused to (horse's name) when (Loaner's name) is riding, (Loaner's name) is liable to pay 50% of the insurance excess"

As he's my horse and the insurance is in my name, I will pay for any other illnesses or injuries, and I wouldn't expect her to contribute (unless he became injured while she was riding him). This is more of a 'share' arrangement than a 'loan' arrangement though (because the loaner only wants to ride at weekends and I take care of the horse during the week, and ride him if I want). However, when he was away at another yard on loan, the loaner who had him then, insured him and paid for any problems he had when he was there.

Hope that makes sense!
 
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Having been a sharer before a loaner this can be quite tricky.

The mare I shared was barefoot, very footy when out, had an old hip injury and what we know now was a badly fitting saddle.

She could have gone lame at any time when I was riding her as her owner hardly ever used to ride.

But the historic hip was not my fault, nor was the badly fitting saddle and the I would have shod her yesterday if it was my decision.

In this case there was no way was I paying for vet fees. Infact the only time the mare was off work when I shared it was the owners fault yet I still payed my monthly fee :rolleyes: Should I have???

:confused:

I dunno - if I was to share one of mine I would want the max sum per month to help pay for .........

shoeing
vaccinations
insurance and the
excess on pending vet bill

In my own mind I was prepared to pay for two months with non rideable horse but if it had have gone on for any longer I would have discussed NOT paying at all but continuing with DIY chores 3 times per week.

Tis a tricky one!
 
I have a vaguley informal share, my horse is looked after and ridden by a couple of friends while im at uni. However, i would not expect them to pay for any vets bills unless it was something i strictly told them they were not to do with her.
 
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Interesting question, Nic. I think it would depend on the injury and how it came about. (I'm trying to think of an instance when a sharer could cause illness, in which case more fool the owner for not picking a more knowledgeable sharer! :p ) I'm guessing that 9 times out of 10 it would be that the sharer caused an injury through their negligence. If there is concrete proof that the sharer deffo caused the injury then yes, I think it's fair to ask them to cover the vet's fees, or certainly any excesses that wouldn't be covered on the horse's insurance. The problem then arises with future exclusions that the insurance company may then apply to your policy... it's a bit of a minefield isn't it? :confused: I think it maybe should make us all think about having a clause in the contract AND pointing it our verbally to the sharer before or at the point of signature....
 
I am a sharer and have rider insurance which has some vets cover, but my share pony is also insued and owner has said he is covered for every eventuality. I guess if something happened and i needed to get vet out asap then i would use my insurance for this if it covered it, or i would offer to split excess if it was caused by me (not thati would do anything to endanger my share pony)
 
Just my opinion, but unless it's stated in a contract i'd expect the owner to pay the vets bills. I'd expect my contribution to have gone towards that as well as farrier etc. But i've never shared so maybe that's not the norm. I'd only pay them if i was loaning a horse.
 
Unless the sharer was negligent/did something I said not to, I'd pay. Good point tho-remember that thread a while back where the sharer's BF was too heavy and lamed the horse, riding w/o permission? Guess you have to be vigilant and have a share agreement.
 
if i was sharing a horse
and that horse was on my yard or something..
were i was the only one looking after it ect

i would pay the vet bills
 
i went away thinking about this thread as i share a horse. Then i remembered that when the owner went on holiday for a week she gave me all the horses insurance documents in case i needed them if she got ill or went lame. so i dont expect that i would pay the vet bills and the owner obviously doesnt expect me to either.
 
This is the thing you see. If the sharer has caused the injury then I would expect the share to pay for the cost of the vet fees. But then I question my thoughts as I may be expecting too much...:confused:

Captain is insured, and of course I would claim on the insurance. I guess someone has already stated that the sharer could be expected to pay the excess and any costs the insurance wouldnt cover is reasonable...:confused:
 
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