Racehorse Owners Insurance

The cover options available under liability policies are specific to each individual policy but the main areas include:

Public Liability
Covers against bodily injury to third parties and damage to third party property
Employers Liability
Cover against bodily injury to people employed by you or your business
Custodial Liability (Care, Custody & Control)
Cover against death/accidental injury to horses/ponies under your care, custody or control.

The phrase ‘Limit of Indemnity’ is the insurer’s maximum liability in respect of any one event or series of events i.e. it is the total to which you are covered up to. In some cases you will be offered a choice of the limit of indemnity and in other instances the level of indemnity will be fixed.

When offered a choice, for example Public Liability cover up to £1,000,000/£2,000,000 or £5,000,000 the higher limit of indemnity will mean that you will pay a slightly higher premium. In the event of a claim you will have to provide evidence in order to substantiate the amount to be claimed.

Public Liability covers you against bodily injury to a third party or damage to a third parties property as a direct result of your negligence. Public Liability cover will normally be offered with a choice to the limit of indemnity. The scale of benefit will be outlined in the individual terms and conditions of the policy.

Public Liability cover, although not law, is essential for any business, event /show, club, instructor or trainer and is often a requirement when taking out Employers Liability.

Employers’ Liability provides cover for any bodily injury, sickness or disease sustained by your employees as a result of the business’s negligence.

Employers’ Liability is a requirement by law under the Employers’ Liability Act 1969 and should be in place for anyone working on your behalf, whether full time, part time or in training.

When taking out employers’ liability it is often a requirement to also take out public liability cover.

You can find out more about employers laibility here – http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/hse40.pdf

Custodial Liability insurance provides cover against the death and/or accidental injury to horses/ponies that are in your care, custody and control, such as full time liveries or working liveries, in respect to a claim that is made against you by the owner.

A benefit will be paid for veterinary fees and/or the current market value, up to the limit of indemnity, in the event of an accident, sickness, disease or mortality of the horse.

Most policies will offer a choice in the limit of indemnity per horse but up to up to a maximum limit of indemnity in the policy period.

Yes our policies are designed, when possible, to offer you the flexibility to choose which areas you wish to take out and also provide extension of cover depending on your business requirements.

In some policies certain cover is automatically provided where as in others it is offered as an additional extension to the cover. For example care, custody and control is automatically included in a riding establishment policy where as on a livery yard policy it is offered as an extension to cover – a DIY livery yard who isn’t handling client’s horses would not necessarily wish to take out this level of cover. Where as a livery yard offering full livery and therefore dealing with clients horses on a daily basis, care, custody and control would be a sensible option to consider.

It is important when obtaining a quote to tell your insurer as much information as possible in order for them to gain a good understand of your business and insurance needs. Failure to specify certain information may lead to having inappropriate cover, may affect any claims against the policy or both.

When phoning up make sure you have the following information easily to hand:

• Main Business Activity
• Number of Staff
• Number of Horses
• Wageroll
• Any other business activities
• What insurance you currently have in place

KBIS, like all insurers, require that you comply with current Health and Safety guidelines as well as ensuring that you have appropriate risk assessments in place. Whilst we do not provide any risk management advice ourselves, the following two links may act as useful reference points and contain information on risk assessments and expected requirements, along with good practice advice for equestrian businesses:

Health & Safety Executive

Chartered Institute of Environmental Health Horse Riding Establishments & Livery Yard Guidance

Liability claims are often a complex process and unlike in other claims procedures your insurance company will deal with the incident on your behalf. You will therefore need to forward any relevant documentation relating to the incident or solicitors letters onto you insurance company in order for them to defend your position in the event that you are not liable.

In some cases a loss adjuster may be appointed by the underwriters to establish the exact cause of the loss.