Advice for a friend please re horse purchase gone wrong

charlie76

charlie76

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A friend of mine bought a horse recently that is not as described. The advert( I can PM it to anyone if they like) describe the horse as almost perfect and never putting a foot wrong. My friend bought it ( it was not cheap) and took him home. She gave him time to settle and then rode him. She was walking on him in the arena when he suddenly bolted and bucked her off, he then jumped out of the arena and galloped around the field for over half an hour with his tack on.
The horse is on part livery with a pro rider, the pro rider said he would ride him and he did exactly the same to him. Understandably, no one wants to get back on him.
She is a nervous but competant rider who told the seller this.
The seller has 3 horses for sale on HorseQuest although insists she is a private seller.
Friend has called her and spoken to her and she will not listen to her, she now will not answer the phone to her.
what would you do next?
 
How long has your friend had the horse? Depending on the horse's temperament it could can take weeks, sometimes months to settle in a new environment!
 
I would go to trading standards. If they are selling more than 3 horses a year (let alone at the same time), they are likely to be classed as a trader and therefore have responsibilities about the horses they sell.

But before they go to TS, get them to write down a diary of exactly what has happened when, and also write a letter to the trader advising them that the horse is not as described and asking them to make arrangements for its return and refund of purchase price, giving 7 days for them to contact to make the arrangements.

Did they have to horse vetted and blood tested?
 
Get as much evidence as possible to prove your purchase and then as many witness statements as possible to confirm the horses beahviour.

Get bloods analysed from the vetting as she's within the six months to check if anything is amiss there.

Find out if this seller has other adverse feedback from disgruntled buyers or is this a one off.

Go to trading standards as they consider anyone selling over 3 horses a year as a dealer.

If all else fails and the dealer doesn't listen they are stupid and not worried about their reputation so issue court proceedings.
 
1. How many times did she try her?
2. Did she have the horse vetted?
3. How long did she 'let him settle' before riding? (days?)
4. Is it same tack as horse had previously?
5. How long since she brought the horse?

If the answer to at least Q2 is 'yes' & Q5 is less than a fortnight or so then get bloods done.
Go to trading standards anyway.
 
Frankly I would get a letter drafted by a solicitor stating the facts and that horse is to be returned and refunded.

If the horse is under £5k the you can claim under the small claims court route. I would firstly speak to a solicitor or BHS legal line - get the friend to join BHS today if she isn't already a member and get advice from them. You could also speak to Trading Standards - it would be easy to prove multiple sales via the internet - google the phone number etc. This is dreadful :( I assume the person tried the horse out? and vetted?
 
All ads describe these "perfect" horses that then seem to undergo radical changes once they move yards.:eek:

Was it vetted, getting the bloods tested may be the first step now as she has made contact and got nowhere. A letter to state it is being returned or further action will be taken could be worth a try but is most likely to be ignored it will set the ball rolling though.
Keep a copy of the ad, any others too. Gather all info on both the horse and the seller, there will be stuff to find if you start searching for it.
If she is dealing there should be more chance of returning it but money back may prove more difficult without either doing a swap or court.

pm the ad, Im nosy and may have more suggestions also the name of horse if you can.
 
She didn't buy the horse from Kent did she :(.
This is awful, poor lady. I think she should contact a solicitor. I wish her luck in getting it sorted. I was absolutely screwed over buying a horse off a supposed private seller who actually was a front to a dodgy dealer cleaning out their rubbish and I lost a ton of money.
:(
 
The horse came from surrey, will PM the ad to anyone that asks. I have googled the number and there are loads for sale. The horse had a few days to settle and lives out. She tried him twice and he was fine.Thanks for the advice.
 
Haven't read all the replies but has he only done this the once?

Mine is as safe as houses but decided to buck, bronk & bolt the other day (for the first & only time in 4yrs) because someone had moved the mounting block!!!
 
Yes and the pro rider is also a friend and would not exagerate! I am not daft, I am more than aware that a horse needs some time to settle ( having said that we all expect are horses to travel to a show or camp and peform without time to settle!) However, if the horse is describe as a saint and it is bolting and bucking people off , this is not the case.
 
I agree. When I got my 4yr old ex-racer, he didn't buck and bolt me off when I first rode him the day after he arrived, he was perfectly normal.
Yes they have their moments, yes they can be unsettled but I also would hope that any normal horse would behave reasonably, especially one sold as a confidence giver.
Sounds like there is a problem with this horse and it shouldn't be your friends problem but the people who sold it and misrepresented it!
 
If the seller is actully private, or cannot be proved that they are a dealer, I don't believe you have any right to return the horse.

Personally, I would do as others have said above, get bloods tested if a 5* vetting was done. If not, she may better off spending her money on seeing if there is a problem with the horse (has he fallen over in the field and damaged something). Courts, solictors etc cost money and cause nothing but stress!
 
I think the amount of recent ads I have found prove that she is a dealer, I have printed them all off and they are dated. I have also done searches on her which says that she buys and sells.
She let the seller know straight away that he was being naughty. The seller basically made out that there was nothing wrong with him and tough really.
 
Well if she's adamant she wants rid of it, and you want to go via the cours... you are going to need concrete proof that it was "naughty" before, and that the seller knew it "wasnt fit for purpose". How you go about doing this is another matter.
 
I would try trading standerds, or give seller an ultimatum of full refund or go to small claims court (where seller could be liable for full livery bill ? ). Why do so many people give a horse time to" settle in". Some horses take advantage of this, I would ride straight away.
 
In that case bloods would be worth doing, it costs but if the horse was on anything it really makes any case.
As for the attitude, if she is dealing it probably means she has not the best reputation as most dealers, even the bad ones can at least be honest that they are dealing.
I dont get the thats tough, it will just get the buyers more likely to take further action, what harm can it do to say i'll come out and take a look or offer some advice on the phone, there is no need to be rude.

Trading standards may be interested if 3 a year are considered dealing, the tax man may be interested if they are expensive horses.
 
charlie76 said:
Yes and the pro rider is also a friend and would not exagerate! I am not daft, I am more than aware that a horse needs some time to settle ( having said that we all expect are horses to travel to a show or camp and peform without time to settle!) However, if the horse is describe as a saint and it is bolting and bucking people off , this is not the case.
Click to expand...

Thats why I asked, your no muppet so if any thing obvious was causing it then I'd have thought you would have noticed fairly qickly. Seems like your best bet is to prove she is a dealer then go about getting your money back.

Good luck to your friend in her search for a horse hope she finds a more suitable one soon.
 
Once working can you please PM me the ad. I know someone else who bought from Surrey from a dealer claiming to be private.
 
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