All the saddles - gone!

Sealine

Sealine

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Last night two tack rooms were broken into on the DIY livery yard I keep my horse at. I was planning to ride this morning and when I went to unlock the tackroom I realised it was already unlocked. Horrible shock to open the door and see all the saddles had gone and half the bridles. I'm sure there is no chance of getting them back. I've lost my Albion K2 GP and now I'm going to have to search for a replacement. On the grapevine I've heard about six yards were broken into last night in the Herts/Beds/Bucks border.

I know it's only 'stuff' but there is something rather personal about saddles.
 
i really feel your [pain, our yard on the suffolf/essex border was broken into in december and they took all saddles from both tack rooms, all bridles and some leather headcollars...i was devastated as i'd had my saddle from new and had recently had it adjusted to fit my loan horse, i lost my horse in september and loved the saddle so much and was so pleased that the saddler could alter it to fit....apart from finding a new saddle there is the expense of stirrup irons and leathers and girth, i still remember that sick feeling when we looked in the tack room and it was empty....i still look on the ads to see if my saddle comes up as i have the serial no so can positively identify it and would try and get it back....
 
My friend's daughter had her beautiful Kieffer jumping saddle stolen. She's 17 years old and she saved hard to buy that last year when started earning her own money. It was heart breaking to see her sobbing when she realised it had gone. Yes it can be replaced but she worked hard and saved hard to buy something that was very special to her and now it's gone.
 
oh how sickening Sealine. Hope you manage to recover it :( What a horrible start to the day.

It's a pita but posts like these remind me that it's worth dragging my stuff home every night, some people are right barstewards.
 
This is why I have a locked locker inside the locked tack room. No it won't take a genius to open it but it's hard enough (I say from experience as the last time I went to yard I forgot the key and attempted to break into it myself without success lol)

The yard has Cctv that records 24/7 in hidden spots so if anyone did go in they would be seen but it's a scary thought.

The thing that annoys me the most is there is just nothing you can do to get it back. Stamping it and marking it won't work cause people Buying don't know/care where it's come from.
 
Thieving scum! Its sickening how many yards are being broken into, it just goes to show that even with really good security, locks and cctv, those who know what theyre doing will get in anyway. Noone at our yard leaves anything of value around, it is a pita but we all take all our tack, riding gear etc home, at least that way its covered on your house insurance. We obviously have feed and grooming stuff there but nothing of any consequence. Its just not worth it these days :(
 
i now take my tack home as i couldnt bear to go through that experience again even though my replacement saddle isnt as precious as my old one....as i am in a tiny cottage it has to stay in the living room ....
 
I'm very sorry to hear about this. It's awful that you just can't seem to trust anyone :( it's so horrible that this happens. Is there a way to track stolen saddles? Like putting a GPS device in them? Was your saddle insured?
 
splashgirl45 said:
i now take my tack home as i couldnt bear to go through that experience again even though my replacement saddle isnt as precious as my old one....as i am in a tiny cottage it has to stay in the living room ....
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try 3 saddles in a bedsit! Every time I trip over one I remember the hassle and heartache that other people have been through :(
 
A professional yard close to me was raided this weekend and a huge number of saddles, bridles etc taken, all top quality. This was a professional job, not just a casual theft. There is no point in stealing unless there's a market so we should all be very careful about whom we buy from secondhand. OP I'm sorry to hear of your things being stolen, whey just cost so much to replace.
 
milliepops said:
try 3 saddles in a bedsit! Every time I trip over one I remember the hassle and heartache that other people have been through :(
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worse than me then!!!!!! i could never risk leaving my tack at the yard again even though they have upped the security..trouble is these people seem to be able to get through the security of they really want to....my rugs are still at the yard but if they go its not quite so bad...still bad though!!
 
So sorry Sealine, it may be stuff but it is expensive and personal stuff! Do you have insurance on your tack?

Although everything is locked up on my yard I always worry about this, I never leave anything very expensive over there, really p****s me off that people can't keep their hands off other peoples property. Especially if you've worked hard to save up and buy a nice saddle!
 
Thanks everyone for your kind comments. In theory my saddle is insured under my horse insurance but people have told me it's difficult to get them to payout and it's alot easier to claim off of house insurance for this type of theft. Unfortunately my house insurance doesn't include personal belongings away from the home. Also, having read the small print on my insurance they only pay out the market value of any item more than two years old. I bought my saddle second hand six years ago and it's in excellent condition but I'm not sure what they'd value it at. As well as the saddle itself I've lost the girth, a £100 numnah, a seat saver and leathers and irons.
 
Sealine said:
Thanks everyone for your kind comments. In theory my saddle is insured under my horse insurance but people have told me it's difficult to get them to payout and it's alot easier to claim off of house insurance for this type of theft. Unfortunately my house insurance doesn't include personal belongings away from the home. Also, having read the small print on my insurance they only pay out the market value of any item more than two years old. I bought my saddle second hand six years ago and it's in excellent condition but I'm not sure what they'd value it at. As well as the saddle itself I've lost the girth, a £100 numnah, a seat saver and leathers and irons.
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i thought my tack was covered with my home insurance and they wriggled out of it and will only pay out if i kept it at home....i can barely afford to keep my horse and that was a big blow so the credit card took yet another hammering...why not get some valuations yourself to send to ins co., also you can say the stirrup irons,leathers and girth are not over 2 years old..although my saddle was old my extras were all reasonably new because girths and leathers have to be safe and i got some safety stirrup irons quite recently ...so you can use that argument to maybe get a better return for the rest even if the saddle payout is low...good luck
 
Insurance is a nightmare to deal with. I lost all my stuff in a fire a few years ago. The total cost of the items lost came to about £4,500 - it included an Albion saddle and a handmade double bridle, all my rugs bar the one on my horse and all the other bits and pieces you accumulate. Luckily, my new saddle (a very expensive Jaguar) was in the YO's house. The insurance would only pay out for items involved in "riding the horse and outside rugs". So basically, a saddle, two bridles and two turnout rugs. Nothing else was covered. I got £1,300 paid out.
 
I had a tack theft a few years back, so I completely sympathise. I was very lucky in that my home insurance paid out - a substantial amount and with absolutely no fuss, full credit to them. Unfortunately, some of it was irreplaceable - a very niche saddle, and, more importantly, everything belonging to my childhood pony who had died a week or two beforehand. The people who do this are absolute knobs - and that's not my first choice of word, but I'd rather not be banned!
 
equi said:
The thing that annoys me the most is there is just nothing you can do to get it back. Stamping it and marking it won't work cause people Buying don't know/care where it's come from.
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I always check the serial number when buying a saddle as if it is stolen you stand to lose what you paid for it and obviously I don't want to buy stolen goods or support the market for them
 
So sorry to read this, the thieving barstewards!

Also worth checking the small print of your horse insurance for tack... most will only insure it if the tackroom has a 5 lever mortice deadlock bolt, and I've yet to come across a tack room that has that on the door! I keep my saddle in my car as it's insured in there, plus people have a habit of constantly leaving the tack room open.
 
Kat said:
I always check the serial number when buying a saddle as if it is stolen you stand to lose what you paid for it and obviously I don't want to buy stolen goods or support the market for them
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Where do you check the serial numbers? Is there a centralized record?

Or is it a question of Googling around to see if anybody has reported such-and-such a number on a forum like this one?
 
VRIN said:
The sad thing is that its fellow equestrians that are buying the stolen items.
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I do wonder when I see posts on facebook with photos of many many bits, bridles, numnahs, saddles etc. How on earth does anyone know if genuine.

I buy a lot second hand, but never buy from bulk sellers, that look like a tack room break in!
 
Keith_Beef said:
Where do you check the serial numbers? Is there a centralized record?

Or is it a question of Googling around to see if anybody has reported such-and-such a number on a forum like this one?
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Depends upon the make of saddle but some manufacturers keep a database of saddle serial numbers. I have twice bought a second-hand saddle and both times checked with the manufacturer that the number was genuine, matched the details on the listing and hadn't been reported stolen. Not foolproof as it relies upon people reporting thefts to them but it helps.
 
Keith_Beef said:
Where do you check the serial numbers? Is there a centralized record?
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The ID number, if there is one, and not all brands use them, is usually on the near side sweat flap, ours is up at the top right behind the balance strap. We keep pretty thorough records of original purchasers of every saddle but we wouldn't know of thefts unless we're told of course.
 
The yard I would imagine have normal business insurance, but its not a yards responsibility to insure liveries equipment, unless of course you are willing for them to up the livery costs to cover it and the overheads to administer it.

In practice yards could do more and fit better infrastructure, but often the biggest problem is fellow liveries who lose keys, leave tack room doors open or unlocked, you can have the best security in the world but its pointless if someone wedges the door open whilst they ferry tack to and fro. Are you willing to pay for higher security and have locks or combination numbers changed each time someone leaves or loses a key, do you want CCTV covering you every time you go to the yard?

Very sorry to hear about your situation Sealine and all of the other liveries, I can only imagine how rotten you all feel!
 
sbloom said:
The ID number, if there is one, and not all brands use them, is usually on the near side sweat flap, ours is up at the top right behind the balance strap. We keep pretty thorough records of original purchasers of every saddle but we wouldn't know of thefts unless we're told of course.
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Good to know, thanks. I recently bought a second hand Stübben, I remember seeing it marked Krefeld, but I didn't think of checking for a serial number.
 
Where abouts on the herts/beds/bucks boreder? We live right on it and have horses stabled near by.

We got our tack stolen few years ago and managed tp claim under house insurance for sport equipmemt. Its allowed out of tje house up to 28days.
 
My yard owner - a professional eventer - was cleaned out a few years ago when she was at her last yard. There were a lot of bespoke saddles taken which were unique but have never been traced, which I find really odd
 
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