Horse and Carriage Insurance

The exact veterinary requirements depend on the value of your horse and how long you have owned him. As a guide the following is the minimum that applies but we reserve the right to request additional information if deemed appropriate.

New purchases:

Up to £3000, no veterinary information will be required.

over £3000, if you want veterinary fee or permanent incapacity cover a current 5-stage vetting certificate will be required

£10000 or over will require Xrays (see question below)

Horses owned and currently insured:

A copy of their renewal invitation confirming the cover provided and any exclusions attached to them. We may request a copy of your horse’s veterinary history if there have been medical issues during your ownership. If relevant a copy of their original pre-purchase vetting certificate may also be requested.

Horses owned and uninsured:

A copy of their complete medical history from all the vets who have treated the horse during your ownership will be required. For high-value horses, a current 5-stage vetting certificate will also be requested.

Yes, in addition to a full 5-stage pre-purchase vetting certificate will we require a report on the x-rays of all four feet (to include the Navicular bones), all fetlocks, both hocks and stifles.

Death cover is where either your horse or donkey dies or has to be put to sleep on a Vet’s recommendation to prevent immediate and further suffering. There are guidelines agreed between the insurance industry and the British Equine Veterinary Surgeons (BEVA) about when this applies. Within your policy wording these circumstances are defined as:

Slaughter or destruction of the horse due to an injury or it being afflicted with an excessively painful disease, and a veterinary surgeon is able to give a certificate confirming that the suffering of the horse is incurable and so excessive that immediate destruction was imperative for humane reasons to prevent further suffering

For policies from July 2016 onwards: the Death cover is divided into two sections – a) when euthanasia is warranted in emergency situations and b) death from critical illness or injury necessitating non-immediate euthanasia.

Loss of Use cover however covers the grey area when your horse/donkey could be fat and happy in the field but is unable to perform the work that you require of him i.e. because of damaged ligaments etc. When you purchase Loss of Use cover, you need to tell us what the main use of your horse is.

Incidentally, a loss of use claim must be a result of a physical problem following an accident, lameness or illness. So for driving horses who won’t go back into the carriage following an accident due to being too scared but are still fully fit and healthy, you can’t claim loss of use.

Yes, because he is in your care, custody and control and you have a financial interest in him. However, you need to tell us who he is on loan from, as the owners would be the beneficiaries if he died. You will also need to make sure the owners cancel any insurance they may have for the horse or donkey, since you can’t insure a horse or donkey twice.

Lucky you, it sounds like you got a bargain! Unfortunately, from an insurance point of view, you can only insure him for what you paid at this stage. We work on current market values so the figure you paid for him represents his current market value. However, if after a few months, you have successfully competed with him or schooled him on etc, then we can agree to increase the sum insured because of his progress. This also applies to donkeys or carriages and trailers that have been subject to restoration work

No, you have to have Death and theft on the reasonable value of your horse in order to be able to insure him for vet fees or for loss of use.

Class A covers you to compete up to and including BE90 and British Novice i.e. 90cm.

BE100 &  BS Discovery i.e. 1m needs to go up to class C

Class A includes training and competing up to Elementary but once you start of the higher levels of collection and lateral work you need to increase the cover to Class C.

Neither the Horse and Carriage nor the Complete Donkey Policy will cover you for giving rides. This is because when someone pays or makes a donation for a ride, you owe them a higher duty of care and policy isn’t rated to cover this increased risk. If you wish to find out whether or not your policy can be extended to include this, please contact us for a quote.

There are several ways of paying the annual premium and these are as follows:

For New Policies:

1) You can pay on this site via Opayo (Sagepay) with a credit or debit card. This option will be automatically offered when you complete the proposal form or

2) You can post a cheque to us or

3) If the annual premium is over £150, you can pay over 10 monthly interest-free Direct Debit instalments.

NB: This is arranged by Premium Credit Ltd. You will need to arrange this by calling us with your bank details and you will be required to sign a credit agreement for Premium Credit Ltd.

For all other new policies, please see the methods of payment options on the quotation forwarded to you.

4) Or you can pay the premium by bank transfer to us.

For Renewal policies:

1) You can pay on this site via Opayo (Sagepay) with a credit or debit card or

2) You can post a cheque to us or

3) If the annual premium is over £150, you can pay over 10 monthly interest-free Direct Debit instalments.

4) Or you can pay the premium by bank transfer to us.