Disclaimer against sueing your trainer

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chunkytfg

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Probably a long shot but i was wondering if anyone has ever written a disclamier against your trainer to basically say you wont hold them responsible for anything whilst being trained?

Background- Daughter is having one last winter competing at prelim dressage and a freind up the road from us who is a retired trainer is helping her to get ready for the tests for a nominal fee(£10 for 2 hours!!).

Our yard doesnt have a menage so we are using hers unfortunately because she doesnt teach anyone else she has no public liability insurance.

Now we wouldnt ever dream of sueing her but the fact that we could has her a little bit worried obviously.

We suggested to her that we would have no problem signing away something to say that in the event of an accident we would not hold her responsible for the simple fact we arnt like that and falling on soft sand is much better than on hard grass along with the fact sparky is one of the most trustworthy horses i have ever met.

anyone ever done anything like this if so any chance of looking at it to get ideas what to write?

Also any legal bods who might be able to tell me if it would even hold up in court?
 
I am not legally trained but I doubt you could come up with anything worth the paper it was written on. Insurance on the trainer's part is by far the best option as it covers both parties if something horrible and unexpected does happen.
 
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Also any legal bods who might be able to tell me if it would even hold up in court?

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Disclaimers aren't worth the paper they are written on.

Insurance for professional negligence would be required.
 
see thats the trouble.

our trainer only trains my daughter and no one else. we have a lesson every 2 weeks so the cost of the insurance will probably outweigh the income.

what would change if it was free perhaps?
 
Since the cost of training is so reasonable, why don't you offer to pay the insurance premium? If she is BHS qualified, it's really not very expensive to get cover (about £11 per month). However, she should probably have cover for her arena as well.
 
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Since the cost of training is so reasonable, why don't you offer to pay the insurance premium? If she is BHS qualified, it's really not very expensive to get cover (about £11 per month). However, she should probably have cover for her arena as well.

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ditto!
 
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about £11 per month.

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Please do let me know who does it for £11 per month as I pay £300 per year!

I hope to go on the register but can't until I do the first aid course in November.
 
The BHS - it's £130 for a freelance instructor on the Register, minimum qualification being BHSPT.
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Plus criminal records check, child protection certificate, first aid certificate.
 
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what would change if it was free perhaps?

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Not really. You could still have grounds to sue from professional assurance as opposed to professional negligence - even if you aren't paying, so long as you trusted the advice given as professionally reliable.

Just as a loose example - Even if you aren't paying, your daughter goes for lesson with a trainer, they recommend/advice/encourage her to jump a ruddy great big grid and they then set the poles up in an impossible and dangerous manner. That leads to the horse falling and injuring your daughter - then you would still have grounds to sue, for the professional assurance they have implied, EVEN if you weren't paying.
 
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The BHS - it's £130 for a freelance instructor on the Register, minimum qualification being BHSPT. Plus criminal records check, child protection certificate, first aid certificate.



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Gold Membership of BHS £54 to be paid annually, CRB check £49, CP course £27, First Aid course about £105, the first aid has to be updated every 2 years with a one day course and you have to join the BHS as a gold member to get those prices. Getting on a first aid course could take time unles you are able to travel the country and stay over. My local one was cancelled last year, hence I have private insurance costing around £300 until I can go on the course this year!
 
But would you still feel the same if due to your friend's negligence your daughter was seriously injured with brain damage/serious spinal injury and needed constant care, equipment, converted accommodation etc for the rest of her life, all running into millions? Who's going to pay you to give up your job if you have one to care for her or employ staff? We never think it will happen to us until it does. Christopher Reeve is what I say.

A disclaimer would not stand up and I don't know why you want to do that. If you don't want to sue, you just don't. What you need to know is that in a business context, s2 of the Unfair Contract Terms Act applies. Your friend/trainer cannot disclaim liability for injury or death which follows as a result of their negligence. Even in a non business context duty of care/reasonable standard of care/negligence applies.

Insurance is there to pay out when appropriate and your friend must ensure she is covered if she is going to carry on teaching. She needs to discuss her position with a reputable insurer, such as NFU, SEIB and the like -see back of Horse and Hound-and get cover, for peace of mind if nothing else.
 
Surely if your daughter was injured while riding YOUR pony YOUR insurance would pay up? Or have I missed something here? If you were training your daughter and she was injured then the same rules apply do they not?
 
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