10 Top Tips to Tackle The Minefield of Horse Insurance!

Mention horse insurance to any equestrian and they’ll suddenly turn a little pale. The complexity of horse insurance can be more than a little baffling and it can be hard to know where to start. Now we’re no experts but we thought we would put together our top 10 tips for tackling horse insurance, whether you are choosing a policy for a new horse or just considering your options when your renewal comes up.

1. Make a list of exactly what you want covered in your horse’s insurance. The possibilities are endless! Vets fees, public liability, third party, loss of use, saddlery and tack and personal accident to name a few. Look into all of these and consider what is priority for you. Of course the more you opt for, the more expensive the premiums.
2. Consider what insurance is the right for you and your horse. More and more I hear of horse owners preferring to put money aside monthly in case of injury and taking out a simplified insurance policy purely to cover public liability and third party. BHS Gold membership can be a good option for this. However remember how quickly vet fees can add up if your horse gets an injury and really consider if you are in a financial position to deal with this.
3. Exclusions. The majority of horse insurance policies will exclude all previous injuries, and only pay out on a new injury for up to 12 months after it first occurs. Beware of any exclusions in your policy – make sure you read the small print on this so you don’t get caught out.
4. Double check if your vet fees amount is per claim or total amount your insurers will pay out in 12 months. EG is it £5000 for vets fees per injury or £5000 per year! This will make a big difference if you suddenly have a year with an accident prone horse.
5. The age of your horse will have an impact on your insurance options, especially if you have a veteran. Over a certain age most insurance companies will only cover injury and not illness for your horse.
6. If taking out a policy for a new horse check if you need to supply a vetting and whether it needs to be a 2 star or 5 star. Without this your policy may well be invalid!
7. Increasing your excess can help lower your premiums. There are also now some options where you pay a percentage of the vet fees, should you need to make a claim. But of course if you do make a claim you will end up spending more on your horse’s treatment so it is worth doing some calculations on the potential spend and whether you can afford this before you commit to this type of insurance.
8. Do some research/ talk to fellow horse owners about their own experiences to make sure you go with a reputable company that will be easy to deal with if you do need to make a claim. Let’s face it if you have an injured horse then it is a stressful enough time as it is, without having the complications of a difficult insurance company to deal with.
9. Read your policy! We know its boring and it can be easy just to cast it to one side when it arrives in the post but it is worth spending an hour thoroughly reading through the details to make sure you have completed all information correctly and understood everything. If you have any queries or spot any errors it is easier to discuss with the insurance company at this point in time.
10. Get comparative quotes. Yes it takes ages but it could save you some money. If you have been with the same company for years its easy just to go ahead with the renewal but it may be the case that you can get a better deal elsewhere so its always worth a few phone calls. Any savings can go on extra carrots!!

We hope this helps a little! Start the process as soon as you can so you are not in a rush and this should help you make the best decision for yourself, your horse and your financial situation.