Compenstation Culture - Horsey

This case has been reported in todays H+H and as I read through it my jaw fell open. I cannot believe the ruling against this couple which was based on utterly ridiculous heresay evidence with no access to any witness to the incident.

Just because, as horse owners, we are aware that horses have the capability to rear it doesnt mean they do so.

The judgement is completely ludicrous and shows just how far common sense is being pushed beyond its limits.

Doesnt bode well for the future of our hobby and if I were either a riding school owner or were selling a horse I would be extremely concerned for the future.

After this judgement would you offer to let someone else ride your horse???
 
also the girl was working at a dealing yard - and therefore must have expected to end up riding all sorts of horses both ones that had been at the yard a while and also ones that were new and there to sell.

just because horses can rear doesn't mean to say this one did - and to a layperson 'witness' a rear could have been anything from 1 ft off the ground to full up on its back legs and there is no evidence as to which it was - if any rear happened at all

what I'd like to know is if the judges concerned in a lot of these rulings are prejudiced and anti-horse and anti-hunting

in the usa you can 'select' a juror or not on the basis of what may be their perceived prejudice

in some ways it is a shame that we cannot do the same for judges as some of these rulings are beginning to smack of anti-horse motives from judges appointed by labour people who hate horses and view anyone who has one as a 'toff' to be squished in every way possible.
 
Im sorry but I just dont get how the owners were liable!! They should make a ruling that if you fall off or have an accident and sue then you should have to have your own insuranve at a much HIGHER premium as you have basically admitted that you do not have the correct skills to be taking part in the sport and yet you still do!
Shame they cant ban people like that from riding - then ban un experienced uninsured drivers fro the roads!!


I remember years ago I was riding a horse for someone when it spooked at a pigeon, galloped off, fell and threw me into a tree. Thankfully I wasn't injured, but now adays that sounds like the case in which you would sue. Same with another accident where going over asn XC fence my horse foundt he ONLY rabbit hole, caught the ende of it and we slid along the ground and I was injured that time. But Accidents happen!!
 
ah but the police have removed the word 'accident' from their vocabulary - it is no longer an RTA it is an RTC - road traffic collision

i.e. the blame culture is that there isn't any such thing as an accidnet
there is a collision and therefore someone must be to blame

so in equine cases - there isn't an 'accident' there is a fall - and perfoce someone must be to blame for that fall

or so the law seems to be saying
 
its because of cases like these that i dont allow people to ride my old lad! he's brilliant but a bit strong, doesnt buck rear or spook but if people cant ride they can fall for no reason so i wont take the risk!! i'm not having claims against me just to get him a bit of exercise!!
 
Well the case is in the news because it is being appealed to the Court of Appeal, the actual decision was some time ago. So hopefully it will be reversed. It sounds like a typical poor emotionally biased first instance decision and the chances of a successful appeal should I imagine be quite high.
 
I read this today and was shocked. The has never previously reared and hasn't reared since but they are liable becuase any horse could rear... madness
 
Here in the U.S. most states have passed laws to protect stable owners, horse shows, etc. from liability for accidents like this. Basically, the laws state that horse activities have inherent risks and that owners, clubs, etc. are not liable for injuries resulting from those activities. If they hadn't passed those laws, horse shows, lessons, boarding stables would have all been shut down because of the lawsuits.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Well the case is in the news because it is being appealed to the Court of Appeal, the actual decision was some time ago. So hopefully it will be reversed. It sounds like a typical poor emotionally biased first instance decision and the chances of a successful appeal should I imagine be quite high.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree. I find it hard to believe that this case will stand up to appeal.
 
[ QUOTE ]
what I'd like to know is if the judges concerned in a lot of these rulings are prejudiced and anti-horse and anti-hunting

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't think that would be relevant. The claimant is a horse rider herself
confused.gif
Judges are not permitted to allow their political views to influence a ruling. To do so would be unlawful.

[ QUOTE ]
in the usa you can 'select' a juror or not on the basis of what may be their perceived prejudice

[/ QUOTE ]

I think you are confusing criminal and civil law...

[ QUOTE ]
in some ways it is a shame that we cannot do the same for judges as some of these rulings are beginning to smack of anti-horse motives from judges appointed by labour people who hate horses and view anyone who has one as a 'toff' to be squished in every way possible.

[/ QUOTE ]

shocked.gif
A rather derogatory and boarding on defamatory remark...!
 
I don't believe it! Why do people do it nowadays! I wouldn't even think of suing if I fell off I would be too ashamed lol!

I fell off about 8 months ago, I broke all three bones in my leg, my knee and my ankle. I now have pins and plates running the whole length of my leg which are going to be taken out in august. In the accident I was riding my horse, who I bred, backed, broken and competed on so I knew him pretty well. I was warming up to go in the foxhunter class and the clear round ring adjoined the warm-up ring. As I landed over a fence a filler that was leaning up against the wall was knocked over by a small child watching the clear-round. I heard shouts but it was too late the filler fell on my horse and knocked me off him. He was unscathed but I was knocked out and completely screwed my leg up. I was in hospital for three weeks and i am still recieving treatment 8 months later. I could not ride for 6 months due to casts and so I missed all the finals I had qualified for and paid entry fees (BSJA Amateur finals, Blue chip winter finals etc.) I also missed all the second rounds I had qualified for. I have now had to sell my yard of jumping horses as I have been told my leg will not be strong enough to withstand the impact of landing over a fence and I have had to change discipline to dressage. I also had my young stallion gelded as I was only keeping him entire for the young horse classes which I will now miss and there was nobody on the yard capable of looking after an entire at that time. And of course i had no money to put him on full livery as I could not work!!! I have had to put my BHSAI on hold as I cannot trot up or jump and riding can still be painful sometimes.
So for someone to try and get compensation for a horse that has reared up on them is unbeliveable, the next thing you'll hear is that the horse is suing the rider because it was her fault that the horse reared up.
Does anyone think I could claim compensation LOL I have certainly lost a lot and it has changed my life!!! BTW I have started jumping again, against doctor's orders but on a safe realiable chappy. I am ok upto about 1m but anything past that and it is agony. I don't think I will ever be able to do a 1.40m class again. Well here's to a future as a dressage rider! Perhaps it was an omen, perhaps I was meant to do dressage!!! LOL
I am really missing jumping already, I just feel like bombing round a xc course or doing a big track, but anyway I'll keep dreaming, maybe one day I'll do it again???
 
having read the artical im still in shock.....

we live in a mad mad world sometimes.... how on earth can the owner be responsible for the fact that all horses are capable of rearing?
so the fact they CAN tit about, rear, buck, nap makes all owners a target for compensation claims? (i am so confused)

it doesnt matter if its NEVER happened before? that it could be rider error?

my brains confuddled
 
I am mad!!!

The situation is ridiculous, the country is ridiculous. (Oops, I might change my username...) We will soon all be riding on mechanical horses around factory build riding tracks with simulator boxes stuck over our eyes, health and safetly checks complete, sterile.
I can't wait.

All the above because people are so incredibly selfish and closed-minded, absent-minded infact, we all have to suffer and live within these stupid boundaries. It really makes you wonder what's more important - the girls life or her family getting a bit of cash. It's a horse, not a machine.

Does anyone agree with me that half the thrill of riding is that you are working as a pair, and the trust, the risk and everything else make that 'riding a horse'? Maybe there's too much prize money to be won these days.
 
Just to top it off, Aimee, said injured girl, was working at a breaking yard that purchased and brought on competition horses. Righty ho, doesn't sound like she was even out of her depth.
 
A couple of years ago I had a recently broken 4 year old on loan..he was a bit of a firecracker and nobody else at the yard was happy to ride him but I was doing quite nicely with him, we hacked out alone and in company and he only bolted off up the road once when we encountered a llama in a field.
All was fine until we went out one day and he decided he wanted me off, he bucked and bucked and galloped and bucked, unfortunately I had a fairly novice rider with me so couldn't adopt the 'you want to gallop? well lets carry on beyond when you want to stop' policy as she would certainly have been carted along behind me and fallen off. so I sat it out for about 20 bucks interspersed with short gallps until we reached a point where I left I could safely jump off, which i did, still holding on to the reins. All would have been fine except that when I was in mid air he pulled sideways and I landed on my hip instead of my feet as planned. i caught horse, hobbled back to yard and later determined that I had broken my hip and couldn't ride for some months.
The pony went back to his owner who laughingly commented that he had done something very similar to her but she had fallen off without injury beyond bruising.

Compensation? I was tempted, purely because she knew this horse had a tendency to buck and should have warned me, but I didn't go there because he was young and the unexpected can happen, particularly with young horses.

It did impact on my life, only now am I able to ride out, although it is still painful after about 20 minutes, my right leg is weaker and it will be a while before I return to my previous level of fitness.

As for the pony, he was sold to a driving home.
 
This blame culture is ruining it for everyone else. There is a case in a yard near me where a total novice decided to ride a freinds known problem horse, fell off within minutes and is now suing the yard owner! How is it the yard owners fault that he was stupid enough to get onto a horse that he knew was a bit nutty! Surely he should be suing his friend if anyone? Riding horses is inherently dangerous and we make the choice to ride them. WE are responsible for our choices!
 
I think to be quite frank, abb123, the girl who fell off should be suing herself for being so stupid, and presumably in turn using up the NHS allocation for her own stupid actions.

If you get on a horse, in my eyes you are responsible for that horse. If i don't know a horse and am unsure as to it's manner, i will get someone who does know it to jump on first. If they wont, then neither will i.

If you fell off a horse when 'trying it out' - which i'd like to add i have done - you get yourself up, brush yourself down, and apologise for being cocky and thinking you could handle the horse when you couldn't. It's difficult to judge when the owner doesn't make comment at all, but when they have clearly stated that the horse is a nutter, then they have clearly stated the horse is a nutter, and that's it!

Is the girl very stupid?
 
If the appeal isn't successful then it could open a can of worms for a lot more than the horse industry.

Next time I have a car crash I will have to sue the manufacturer for selling me a vehicle that crashed. It is well known that all vehicles have the ability to crash therefor under this ruling the manufacturers must be liable.

Crazy world.
 
[ QUOTE ]
some of these rulings are beginning to smack of anti-horse motives from judges appointed by labour people who hate horses and view anyone who has one as a 'toff' to be squished in every way possible.

[/ QUOTE ]

What utter nonsense, airedale. Come to the Banwen Miners Hunt and try that line on them and see what they say to you...Lots of Labour voters, absolutely no toffs, and every man Jack of them a horse lover.
 
It is very sad that G & M are going through this crap.

It is very worrying as if this does stick where the hell does it stop?

I have a lady who occasionally comes to ride my boy during the week. It is a favour to both of us.

I like for him to get the extra exercise and she can ride as and when she pleases without the costs or time required by owning a horse.

Now, if she fell off my horse and hurt herself? Am I liable? ,,,,,,,,,,,Probably.
 
I for got to say, i have to wonder what this girl is thinking. If she was sufficiently "horsy" to work in a breaking yard, she must have some inkling of what it potentially means for the horsy world going forwards. But perhaps she doesn't care, or is too severely injured to care, or the prospect of lots of ££££ is jsut over-riding all other thought.
 
I think the only winners will be insurance companys, I have paid extra so I can ride any horse and be covered for them and myself and have extra cover for anyone handling/riding Saff
 
Ahh but the insurance companys will be winning in our upped premiums which (touch wood) none of us will ever have to claim, either way once again horse owners are the loosers
 
True...but having said that, I never understand how any insurance company makes money out of horse insurance. I claim loads every year through vets bills and they have paid for my horse several times over... perhaps Im just unlucky!!
I think they flinch every time I call!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top