Being mis-sold a horse, legal rights threads please?

Fabforester

Fabforester

Well-Known Member
Joined
16 January 2007
Messages
296
Location
Beside the Seaside
Visit site
Am sure there are many threads on here and would be grateful if anyone could point me in the right direction.

Friends have purchased a Novice Ride, safe cob, etc, hacks out on own, happy left on his own, and 7 weeks on the horse has proven to be everything but. The new owners are returning to riding after a long break, but are extremely experienced owners, just very rusty riders.

From a LEGAL point of view, as there was no paperwork with the sale and all agreement was oral, do they have any standings to warrant returning the horse? Further probing has led us to find out that the horse was Known to buck and drop his shoulder, Never happy stabled without company around, and bites.

Apologies for not having gone into a lot more detail, and advice / threads appreciated.
 
May I just ask why you can't search for the threads just as well as anyone answering you? I'm always intrigued by this.
 
If the horse came from a ' dealer ' i.e someone who sells more than three horses a year , then you do have a right to return the horse , give trading standards a quick ring ( they are very helpful and informative even if they can't legally help ) if the horse came from a private seller then it's a bit more tricky - buyer beware ' and all that. If your friend still has a copy of the original advert saying that the horse was safe , sound etc but has proved not to be the case then i would imagine that with a little legal advice you could get somewhere , the mere mention of seeking a solicitors help ( you may get an hour free with some solicitors ) would probably kick the seller into touch.

if the horse was known by others to be a bucker - could you get their signatures on a piece of paper and present it to the seller saying that these people would be willing to testify that they knew the horse to have this vice?
 
Last edited:
It will probably depend on whether the seller was a dealer or private, was there an advert with the description, if a dealer you may get somewhere but if private unless they are willing to take it back will be more expensive to pursue than its worth usually.
A vetting should have been done and receipt should have stated the details but if you have no evidence it is just word of mouth.
Probably best to cut your losses and move on or send the horse for some schooling and see if it can be improved.
 
Fabforester said:
Friends have purchased a Novice Ride, safe cob, etc, hacks out on own, happy left on his own, and 7 weeks on the horse has proven to be everything but.
Click to expand...

amymay said:
7 weeks in, and on hearsay they want to return a horse that hasn't put a foot wrong?

I thought you'd said they were experienced..........
Click to expand...


I read that as theyve purchased something thats *supposed* to be all these things, but is 'everything but' what its described as, rather than as you seem to have interpreted it, but, yes, reading back its a little ambiguous :o

Which is it op?
 
*hic* said:
May I just ask why you can't search for the threads just as well as anyone answering you? I'm always intrigued by this.
Click to expand...
Yes you may. It is a lot quicker for someone who has posted on a thread or just read it to c&p the link rather than the perilous keyword search that then needs scrutinising before the relevent info is found - but thanks for your intreague
 
Thank you all.
He came from a private buyer.

He was advertised on adhorse as a novice ride, completely safe and sane in all situations, never bucks, good to handle, etc. He is not. He has been sent to a professional yard as somebody was going to get hurt and it was better for the horse and family in question for him to go. He was purchased locally, and now if sold on would sell for substantially less, on the verge of a project horse, and targetted at a different market. Also, we would make his quirks and vices known if sold on so are likely to lose a lot of money. Cash aside, these people knowingly sold a novice rider a completely kettle of fish to that advertised.

The professional yard where he has gone to has already seen him twice before in the past four years, for exactly the same issues. Sadly, we found this out too late. We feel for the horse too, and just want to put this behind us but at the same time it is horrendous to think the sellers did this with no reprocussions.

Amymay what do you suggest as a private seller, buyer beware etc, always value your advice.
 
Fabforester said:
Thank you all.
He came from a private buyer.

He was advertised on adhorse as a novice ride, completely safe and sane in all situations, never bucks, good to handle, etc. He is not. He has been sent to a professional yard as somebody was going to get hurt and it was better for the horse and family in question for him to go. He was purchased locally, and now if sold on would sell for substantially less, on the verge of a project horse, and targetted at a different market. Also, we would make his quirks and vices known if sold on so are likely to lose a lot of money. Cash aside, these people knowingly sold a novice rider a completely kettle of fish to that advertised.

The professional yard where he has gone to has already seen him twice before in the past four years, for exactly the same issues. Sadly, we found this out too late. We feel for the horse too, and just want to put this behind us but at the same time it is horrendous to think the sellers did this with no reprocussions.

Amymay what do you suggest as a private seller, buyer beware etc, always value your advice.
Click to expand...

If you can get the yard he's at now to write that he has been there twice before, listing his problems and stating that he is NOT a novice ride in their professional opinion, I'm sure that letter will help your cause when you go to TS.

Good luck. :)
 
Hope you have a copy of advert if not sure the advertisers would supply a copy if asked

BHS Legal help line is very good

I do think the buyers have a good case.
 
Do you still have the Advert?

Will the professional yard attest to their dealings with him?

Get the bloods run from the vetting.

How was he when you tried him??

Contact the sellers, tell them of the issues and ask to return the horse (they may say yes....). If they say no - BHS Legal helpline (as Cuffey has suggested), and take them to court.

Let us know how you get on.
 
Firstly you need to contact the seller in writing, make copies. Tell them you will give them 14 days to reply, if they fail to reply write again informing them that you will be taking them to the small claims court. If they do not offer you a full refund for whatever reason, tell them you will sell on the horse at a lower price and will be asking the court to get your losses back. It's only costs about £200 to take it to court and if you win they will have to pay that and can be forced to take the horse back and reimburse livery costs, shoes etc. And this is talking of exeperience. Their is no guarantee that you will win and it is very stressful so tell the family to think about it. And good luck.
 
Depends on how much cash they stand to lose, these guys may well be private vendors, but I suspect they were not, otherwise they would probably not have such a horse to sell, if you see what I mean.
Try and find out other horses they have sold in the past two years [google the phone numbers, name, and address], and if you can find several, then you can demand your legal rights.
Make it clear that as dealers, [they are in business, selling horses], there fore you will be taking them to court if they do not take the horse back and refund all expenses.
There are several parties who will be interested namely Customs and Excise [The Vat man] and Trading Standards, also the courts.
Make it clear that expenses are building up day to day, however if the purchaser waited seven weeks before complaining, and allowing vendor to make recompense, they have weakened their case.
 
Black_Horse_White said:
Firstly you need to contact the seller in writing, make copies. Tell them you will give them 14 days to reply, if they fail to reply write again informing them that you will be taking them to the small claims court. If they do not offer you a full refund for whatever reason, tell them you will sell on the horse at a lower price and will be asking the court to get your losses back. It's only costs about £200 to take it to court and if you win they will have to pay that and can be forced to take the horse back and reimburse livery costs, shoes etc. And this is talking of exeperience. Their is no guarantee that you will win and it is very stressful so tell the family to think about it. And good luck.
Click to expand...

This is great advice, particularly the bit about the stress of going to law.
As long as they did not pay a fortune for the horse they might be better to cut their losses now and put an end to the affair.
My experience is that you have to be very very cautious with what private seller say the biggest porkers I have heard when buying have come from private sales.
I have never dealt with the lower end dealers but the ones I have dealt with
have been much straightforward than private buyers.
Good luck to your friends and I hope they have better experiences in the future.
 
You will have an uphill struggle as they are private sellers. Private sellers are not bound by the sale of goods act and therefore you have very few rights. Basically you will have to establish that they made claims about the horse which they knew to be false and you will need to prove this as they will deny it.

I don't know how much money we are talking about but it may be better to cut your lossses if they won't take the horse back. Legal action will be time consuming, costly, stressful and there are no guarantees that even if you win you will get any money.
 
Have they left it 7 weeks before raising this as a legal issue?

Was the horse vetted/bloods taken?

Personally I wouldn't fancy their chances of being able to return the horse after this period of time.
 
I sympathise with your friends situation but buying from a private seller then complaining 7 weeks after purchase will make it a difficult claim to prove. Trading Standards won't be interested, they only deal with traders so you will be very much on your own.

Buyer Beware in this case i'm afraid!
 
Horrible situation. But if the horse is dangerous I'd have him PTS rather than sell him on and risk someone getting hurt.

Buying from private sellers leaves the buyers with so little protection. I've noticed a lot of dealers seem to be getting round the little problem of responsibility by charging high 'selling livery and training' rates and selling the horse on commission but effectively from a 'private' seller.
 
You need to retain a copy of the original advert.

Advice the seller that the horse is not as described and you want a full refund plus all expenses incurred.

If they fail to co-operate then instruct a specialist equine solicitor to act on your behalf or you could take them to the small claims court. This can be done on-line.

If you are a Gold member of the BHS then you get free legal advice from their legal line.
 
No, the first time it was when he was purchased as a 6 yr old and the second time was by the people who sold him to my friends, when they got him they realised theyd taken on more than they could handle initially. He used to bolt out of the stable, had No manners, and dropped his shoulder at any opportunity.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top