Help! Sharer questions (probably numpty ones...)

[FestiveSpirit]

Although I dont want to, I have advertised my horse as available to share for financial reasons

and I have had my first enquiry

It may all come to nothing of course, but so I am prepared I was wondering how it works:

(1) Does the sharer pay in advance of the days they ride, or afterwards?

(2) Do you have any kind of written agreement drawn up, and if so does anyone have a blank copy I could use?

(3) All I can think of is that the sharer comes to try the horse & see if s/he likes it, if so then we agree the days that the sharer will ride/do the horse, what they can and cannot do with the horse (e.g. can they compete, can they have lessons & if so who with, what size of jumps they can jump) and that is it

There must be more to it surely, what have I missed please?

 

[Ellies_mum2]

I used to pay for the month in advance as it was a set amount for me. You could try working out how much horse costs you to keep per month including shoes,feed, hay etc then divide by 30 to get daily amount then times it by how many times sharer rides per month.
Or say £10 a day then if they ride 3 times a week its £120 a month

£10 a day may sound a lot but when you compare it to having a riding lesson it really isn't that much

Can't help with the contract as we never got around to doing it

But the points you have raised in (3) sound about right. Also make sure that if they compete then they know they have to pay the entry fee ( heard of a case of a sharer wanting to compete and expecting owner to pay for it

)

 

[Divasmum]

Generally monthly on a set date. The contract could include who pays for shoes, how much notice to be given either way, who is actually allowed to ride the horse ie the sharer but not her friends, children etc., who cleans tack, any stable chores or yard rules.

 

[Annagain]

My sharer pays a flat fee every month, for set days. She has him 3 days a week. We have a bit of flexibility and swap when we need to. If you get a good one it's a great way of easing the financial and caring burden. Mine is a star

and has insisted on keeping paying even though he's lame at the moment so she can't ride. I've tried to stop her but the money just appears in my riding boots or my coat pocket and she's giving me cash as I didn't pay the last cheque in! She wants to chip in for his vets bills, bless her. I'm going to do all I can to keep hold of her. But then maybe I'm a good owner too! I let her do what she wants with him and never check up on her as I trust her

 

[cmarychapman]

I'm a sharer heres how it worked for me and Hobbit Pony. This is not text book, just one example so take from it what you will

Most people advise you agree how many days per week the sharer will have, work out your monthly costs, divide it by 31 and then times that by number of days the sharer rides therfore giving their contribution to monthly costs. Be prepared for some haggling if they are a) very experienced and the schooling will benefit your horse b) taking on chores and saving you livery fees c) your desperate

However I simply told HPs owner what I could afford to pay and he accepted - job done.

To answer the questions;

1) Once you have agreed the monthly fee and ask them to pay by direct debit on 1st of the month. There is nothing more annoying than chasing for money so make it easy as possible.

2) Rightly or wrongly I dont have a written agreement. We had a flexible arrangement regarding days and I fitted in around the owner. We are both well insured.

3) It is your horse you call the shots what you say goes. Try and be fair and reasonable. I have lessons but not with the owners instructor as she was very expensive, so we found a cheaper one we agreed on. If I jump in a lesson then height is determined by the instructor, I rarely jump on my own as I have to put up the blooming things but I set my own limit at 2ft9. I compete as yard has SJ comps but also been out to shows, not a bad idea to treat your sharer occassionally if you like them, they'll appreciate it.

Other things;

Make sure they have their own insurance (Pet plan do rider only insurance). Check your insurance policy too.

Try and arrange for a friend to hack out with them the first few times. It will give you peace of mind.

Communicate, I always call at the start of the week to double check the weekly plans and get an update. I have friends who share and have a diary they fill in each time they ride so they can keep each other updated. Another sends out excel sheets with everyone timetabled in when their riding/mucking out and does everything by email. Whatever works but if you dont communicate it will fail.

Phew thats alot, probably more I could say on the subject but will really be an essay!!

 

[Tickles]

1) I pay 20pounds in advance every week by direct debit (my choice). When he has shoes done I pay half on a one-off basis. This stays the same no matter if we are flexible on days (we are - I have 2/3 a week, normally at least one w/end). Would try to keep it simple without too many ad-hoc extras.

2) No, but I did have to give copies of rider insurance doc - you might want to insist sharer gets some of that...

3) Sounds about right. Remember that you can see if you (& horse) like sharer too. We don't have a formal agreement about what I can/can't do but owner is really nice so I know I can always call her with anything I'm unsure of. Mostly we let each other know what we're doing with him (I always do) by text/e-mail so you might want to agree about how often you'll update each other too?

 

[Angua2]

Definatly have a contract. If you PM me your e-mail I can forward the one that I have used for my two.

My sharers always payed in advance and I second the communication. little_flea used to share my mare and we had a very good relationship due to the fact that we communicated. The sharer after little_flea proved a bit of a nightmare and was sacked due to the fact the horse hated her and she didn't communicate

I worked out my costs as hobbit pony suggests too

 

[zeuscleoharmony]

I have been totally stuffed recently by my sharer so would recommend a contract and take an advance payment. And don't be too informal.

I wanted to be all nicey, nicey so kept things very informal, to my peril. She messed me about continuously and the only payment I asked for was shoe money (he is only shod on his fronts every 8 weeks so it worked out about £6.00 p/w and she could ride and treat him as her own four days per week. When it came to him being shod I didn't even get that, being told she couldn't afford it this time, so I paid half. She never, ever got her rider insurance, which I kept asking her to sort out. I did ask that she poo picked on her days, which takes 10 mins. Finally, she decided it was all too much and gave me no notice whatsoever and owes me money. She lasted about six weeks.

And she didn't have the decency to tell me in person, she emailed me.

I specifically asked for my horse to be ridden at least twice per week but she was a fair weather rider it turns out and any sight of a cloud and she cried off.

Also, she told me she had ridden horses all her life - rocking horses perhaps. When she tried my boy out I could clearly see she was inexperienced, used to quiet school horses, but I thought I would give her a chance, afterall someone gave me a chance when I knew nothing. Never again, on the odd occasion she did ride him she was lucky if she got 100 yards up the track before he stopped (trying his luck) and hey, ho - she turned him round and came back home.

This experience has put me off getting a sharer / loaner / rider for Archie. What annoys me is that she is so oblivious to the situation and in hindsight I exasurbated the situation by letting her seemingly dictate what she did and when, I thought I was being nice.

 

[Ziggy_]

I'd like to 3rd the need for communication. My sharer texts me two or three times a week updating me on what she's been doing.

I have also said to her that if she wants to try any other tack/bits etc, she can provided she asks my permission first.

Contract wise I tried to cover all eventualities. For instance thing I would include are
- who is allowed to ride the horse (sharer only in my case, not anyone else including other people from my yard and instructors)
- what circumstances you won't allow them to ride under - for instance if my mare loses a shoe I said she is NOT to be worked at all until its replaced. Make sure there are no grey areas with things like this
- whether (or not) they are allowed to use any training aids on your horse
- who is responsible for replacing any equipment that gets damaged

etc etc

Good luck with it - I turned down countless people before I found mine. She is very good and gets on well with my mare but I still find myself worrying and generally getting paranoid over things

 

[FestiveSpirit]

Thanks for the replies, some really good thoughts here - the main two which I instantly thought "OMG of course" about were that no-one should ride my horse other than the sharer, and she should have rider insurance

I've had that before in the past when I was riding someone elses horse (although they didnt ask me to have it) so I know how cheap it is

Hmmmph, dont want to do this at all really

but needs must - will see if she makes contact again now, I have given her my e-mail and mobile

Oh - should have said originally - my advert stated £10 per day, maximum of 3 days per week, so there was no "confusion" about what I was asking for

That way I control everything regards feed/bedding/shoeing/hay etc, it seemed the simplest solution

 

[Twizzel]

With my old share horse I used to pay on a set day each month, think it was the 22nd, paid up for the month ahead.

We used the BHS loan agreement and tailored it to the situation- where the horse was kept, what days the horse would be looked after by the sharer, what was expected on those days, what tack the horse was ridden in, can the sharer use a whip/spurs when riding? list of rugs, what activities the sharer could/couldn't do, when money would be paid, who is liable if the horse was injured or poorly- would the sharer be liable if the horse got colic on her day? I think regarding this, we put that if injury/illness had been caused by the sharer's actions then they would be liable (i.e. feeding unsoaked sugarbeet, not tying up and horse got loose and ran into road the sharer would be liable, but if the horse broke free then the sharer wouldn't). Contact numbers for future reference, what is expected of the owner- horse should be suitably shod, tack available.

Also make sure your sharer has rider insurance, Petplan do a really good policy which includes emergency vets fees, cover of tack if the sharer damaged it, sum of money paid out if horse died as a result of sharer's actions aswell as 3rd party liability etc etc.

Will the sharer be expected to come up on their days even if they can't ride? Sounds obvious but make sure everything is in the contract...

I think you may struggle with £10/day if the sharer has to do stable chores as well, I paid £110/month for my old share horse and used to ride 4 days a week, worked out to £6.75/day and on my share days I did everything as if she were my own- mucked out, brought in, fed etc etc. With my new share horses I don't actually pay anything (but am aware this is very unusual and I am very lucky

).

Hope that helps a little

 

[janet68]

Hi i have just found a sharer for my horse who is a bit nutty and unpredictable i have not asked for any money as i just want someone to ride him during the week as i dont have time. I am really scared as he is 16.2 and a nightmare to handle and the lady who is sharing him is only about 5ft 2 and around 8 stone. I just want to know if she gets injured while handling him or riding am i liable?

 

[diggerbez]

if you can find a good sharer you will be really glad! i think its important to realise though that they aren't just a source of money...not saying you would but they have to feel like they are getting something for their money so definitely let them have lessons/compete if you are happy with this etc....my sharer can ride whenever she wants and do pretty much what she wants really. have kind of dissuaded her from jumping because he's nutty to jump and she's very inexperienced...would actually rather she had some lessons on him really but not sure how to suggest this to her??