help! sold a horse...

sorry but it's all very well saying 'find the money' for some people that is difficult. and if the OP is not in a position to do as such then that's not a fair response imo.

The buyer is in the wrong here - no legal comeback, she bought the horse after a first viewing. if she isn't get on with him it's her fault.

however, i asume you care for the horse so best thing to do is go over there and help the new owner out a bit to help them get settled.
 
I had this happen to me - I was asked to take back a horse I sold within 5 days. But then I had told her that I was happy to do so at the beginning as the horse was extremely special to me! So I gave her a full refund and sold him again shortly after (to a fantastic home). Some people just seem to panic I think. 5 days is nothing for a horse to settle, but TBH its really down to you what to do. I'd buy him back however if you cannot do this financially then perhaps you could offer to try and sell the horse for her (ie. you go and ride it if its nearby and deal with callers etc.??).
 
Horrible position to be in. I would call (citizens advice bureau?) for advice before any more communications. The buyer could try to go to a small claims court if she felt the horse was not described properly but this is not often sucessful - its hard for a non horsey judge to understand exactly what the issue is. However, I would most certainly ask for advice BEFORE offering any help - I am in no way a legal bod but wondered if you offering to help sort it out/sell it on etc could be deemed as a legal admission that you agree there is something wrong? Unless you had a communication (email?) which stated that you offering help without admitting there is problem (might be without prejudice). I stress I am not nor have I ever had legal training but I would most certainly ask this question before I became involved.

The facts are you dont have a lot of options open to you because you dont have the money/space to address her issues. Take that out of the equation, take legal advice to protect your position, and then offer this woman the help you wanted to.
 
I agree with Luci07. Don't communicate any more until you have some legal advice. BHS, CAB, or even your house insurance might be able to help.
 
I'm insured with NFU and although their legal fees do not cover this kind of situation, they are able to give you some free legal guidance over the phone (I had a similar situation with a buyer but after a longer period of time). Good luck, it is a horrid situation to be in x
 
shysmum said:
Just to clarify "SOLD as SEEN" - (tho I know this does not apply in this case).

http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/archive/index.php/t-251237.html

As far as I can tell, this does NOT automatically apply to any sale, it has to be specified either on the advert, and/or on the jointly agreed and signed receipt.

Sorry to be off on a tangent OP.. sm x
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That link refers to buying from auctions without warranty/ sold as seen.

Sold as seen does apply in a private sale, unless a warranty is given which in this case it was not.
Even if the OP had given a warranty then the burden of proof lies with the buyer to prove that the horse was not fit for purpose which is very difficult.
In civil (as opposed to criminal) cases the proof shown has to be 'on balance of probability' rather than 'beyond reasonable doubt' ie. for civil, the judge would only need to believe one party 51% over the other party 49%.

In reality it's unlikely such a case would ever go to court anyway (although possible!)
 
amymay said:
Patches on here will tell you a story to make your hair stand on end.............. And would totally disagree with your statement.
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Hell yes, do I have a tale to tell. My friend is on here, who was the innocent party taken to court. She'll tell you all about it too.

Short version -

Sold horse to a woman who came to look at her, tried her out etc. Woman was told horse didn't like tractors but would happily hack alone and in company etc.

Said woman takes my friend to court because she says she wasn't fit for purpose as she claimed she could not hack her alone! She showed a video of her leading the horse down the road claiming to not be able to control her. Anyone who knew anything about horses would know the horse was just walking a bit fast as the woman was taking "fairy steps".

Judge wasn't remotely interested in what the horse had done in it's previous home. As far as he was concerned the point in question was that the new owner said she couldn't hack out the horse alone and took her word for it. He said in court that the only person's statement he took to be accurate was her friends. Highly offending for me as he was basically implying that my statement was fabrication, which it definitely wasn't.

My friend had to buy horse back, pay for livery etc for her too and pay all costs.

The irony here is that after 6 months of not being ridden, my friend collected her on their driveway (they refused us access to the yard!), tacked her up and rode her away up the road ALONE in traffic. Not a problem! I videoed that and they were there videoing me too.

It took them £200 I believe to bring a case in the small claims court. It would've cost my friend over £800 to launch an appeal though. It's frightfully set up in favour of the plaintiff. The Judge told us that much. He said where there is any doubt he prefers to side with the plaintiff!

It was a complete farce. It really was.
 
Patches - I remember when your friend was going through the court case and I was positive that the Judge would find in her favour, so it was a complete reality check to find that he found in favour of the Plaintiff. I think so many people think there is no comeback when a horse is sold privately, and your friend's case shows just how wrong this is.
To the OP - it sounds as if the person who bought your horse has made up their mind they don't want it anymore inspite of your offer of help. Anyone who knows anything about any animal would know that it needs more than 5 days to settle in a new home! One of mine took a year. I would write down everything you can remember about the sale, the time and dates of all communications including her contacting you after the sale and your offers of help. As you haven't got the money to buy the horse back, can you suggest she sends it back to you to resell on her behalf - perhaps that would be a compromise? Get in touch with the BHS legal helpline for advice.
 
I totally agree with Amymay. The best thing you can do is find the money and buy him back, you can put him up for sale again straight away and if he's as good as you say he is he'll sell again quickly. Here are my reasons for advising you to buy him back....

- if she's given up on him in five days she is clearly a numpty who will either ruin him or sell him on pretty quickly - he could end up being passed from pillar to post
- if she IS a numpty she will inevitably create more problems, and probably ring you, blame you and expect you to take him back every time a new one arises.
- she CAN take you to court over this and she CAN win - I was going to mention Patches story but I don't need to - its not the first time the judge has seen the buyers side.

If this stupid woman decides to take you to court you will be getting into dangerous and expensive territory. If she can't handle this horse she's bought, he is going to suffer in her hands. Find the money, cut your losses, and accept that you'll have to sell him again.
 
Agree with foxey, but why cann't you give money back as it's only been 5 days. Nobody in their right mind sells a horse and spends the money straight away as something can always happen like the new owner wanting her money back!
 
Personally I would be worried he'll end up ion the wrong hands so would do anything to have him back and find him a better home, the lady in question has given him enough time to settle I don't think, she can't sure you for it.
 
johnrobert said:
Agree with foxey, but why cann't you give money back as it's only been 5 days. Nobody in their right mind sells a horse and spends the money straight away as something can always happen like the new owner wanting her money back!
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Eh? Horses are often sold as owners can't afford to keep them as they have pressing financial difficulties and we have no way of knowing if this is the case with the OP, and nor should we as it's not our business. If she says she can't buy back then we have to take her word for it.

How long would you have had the OP hold the money for before she used it for another purpose? How far down the line might a purchaser want their money back do you reckon?
 
NeilM said:
Why is it that people think horses are cars / washing machines / TV's. They seem to think that the instant the press the 'ON' switch it will be the perfect horse that they always dreamed of. I cannot tell you what I think about the buyer, as it is probably libellous.

As far as the buyer is concerned I would politely tell her that a horse needs MONTHS to settle in, and remind her of the conversation where you pointed out he could well be spooky to start with. Also tell her that as horses are prey animals, turning out into a new (never seen before) field is very likely to get an adverse response as the poor horse has not yet worked out that the field is a safe place.

I would hate to sell a horse, as I believe 90% of people are morons (present company excepted).
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Exactly what I was going to type! When I bought my boy he was a saint for on, 2 days then a little ****e for about 2 months! A complete bugger to catch, and naughty when ridden, but he had good moments so I just persevered and put it down to change.

I learnt with my first horse you need to let them settle. I didn't with her and I ended up with a load of broken stuff, and almost a horse with a broken neck as she went mental when tied up and the headcollar took ages to break. 2 weeks in the field with minimal contact and she was fine after that.
 
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