Livery Yards - "deposits"?

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domane

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Two friends have recently moved to new livery yards and have been asked to pay their livery charge a month in advance (fair enough) PLUS an additional month as a "security deposit" - different yards, I should add.... different counties in fact! I've never heard of this before and wondered how many of you have had to do this... or if it's becoming more popular in these days of financial worry?
 
Most yards round here will charge a £100 give or take deposit before you move in especially if you are not wanting to move for a month, then they still get "rent" for might what be an empty stable for a month, also covers them if you decide you dont want the stable anymore.

Then when you move in you pay your months livery in advance

Its not an uncommon thing
 
since we've had liveries do midnight flits leaving their fields/stables in a state my YO has started to charge a months livery as a deposit.
If you leave your stable/field in a good state of repair and clean/tidy, and you don't owe for hay/bedding then you get your deposit back.
if you leave your field dirty or anything damaged, or you owe for hay/bedding/wormer etc then it gets taken out of your deposit and any balance returned. Simples.
 
I was asked to pay a deposit on my yard when I moved in. I think its fair - margins are tight enough on livery yards without YO's being hit in the pocket by liveries who don't pay debts, do flits or whose horses trash the place. I wouldn't want my livery bill increased to cover costs incurred by liveries like that.
 
I charge a 10% deposit to save the stable and then deduct this from the first month's livery (that is payable in advance). I have never had any problems, although I only do full and part livery and don't think the 'moonlight flit' is such a problem with people who can aford to fork out £400 plus on livery a month. *Touches wood*
 
I had to pay 2months up front at my yard as a security thing, then theres no way of not giving the one months notice should you leave, you just get the last month "free"
 
Its sad but true that those who are genuine folk don't pose a problem and would willingly pay deposits and livery bills and wait for their deposit to be returned, but there are far too many others who even if they have paid a deposit are bad payers and still manage to do a flit owing money.
Deposits only really work with genuine, honest horse owners!
 
I do ask for a months deposit at my yard, again as someone has already said its security for any owners leaving without notice or with unpaid bills/damage to stables. Have to say the massive majority of Owners are great, look after the yard and pay religiously. I think since I have had liveries at my yard (over 20 years!!) I have only ever had trouble with one!! (Touching wood madly here LOL!)
 
We toyed with the idea having had someone try (unsuccessfully) to do a flit without paying for the notice period. We don't currently though. I don't think it's a bad idea.
 
Only had to do this once. Was a very expensive month. Former yard billed in arrears, so on moving, we had to pay new yard a month in advance, plus a month's livery as a deposit on all three horses.
In effect 3 months livery x 3.
I'm not quite sure why, if you pay a month in advance, a deposit is needed as well though.
If a livery has a destructive horse, its understandable that they should pay for the damage, but is getting rembursed a big problem for YO's ?
 
I think it depends on the yard. I've had people leave my place either leaving the stable all mucky for me to deal with, plus their horse has half-eaten everything in sight and the stable door and fencing needs replacing, plus one horse who basically ploughed straight through post & rails and they just left it like it was for me to deal with!!! :( Blimmin people, I don't know what's wrong with some of them.

If I was taking on a new livery and knew nothing about them, I'd probably take a deposit of some sort to firstly reserve the space on the yard (in case they were a timewaster) and if they left then they'd get it returned in full if there was no damage to anything.

But the livery I've got now is known to me and therefore I didn't take up a deposit. I think if you're running a big yard then you'd have to be uniform across the board and charge a flat rate as deposit etc. but here we're only doing DIY for one person basically so are a bit more flexible.

But if I was going to a yard I'd expect to be asked for a deposit.
 
domane said:
Two friends have recently moved to new livery yards and have been asked to pay their livery charge a month in advance (fair enough) PLUS an additional month as a "security deposit" - different yards, I should add.... different counties in fact! I've never heard of this before and wondered how many of you have had to do this... or if it's becoming more popular in these days of financial worry?
Click to expand...
I had to do that with my last two yards, seems the norm in Surrey :)
 
horserider said:
I'm not quite sure why, if you pay a month in advance, a deposit is needed as well though.
Click to expand...

Firstly, just to answer horserider's question... we pay on the 25th of each month to allow the funds to clear for the next month, therefore without a deposit someone could not pay for the next month and dissapear at the end of the current month with hay and straw money outstanding, the stable and fields in a mess etc...

A month's deposit plus paying a month in advance makes perfect sense to me as the YO is covered for those who do vanish in the middle of the night, they can also hold this morning to cover wormers etc.. if they bill at the end of the month too :)
 
lilaclomax said:
Firstly, just to answer horserider's question... we pay on the 25th of each month to allow the funds to clear for the next month, therefore without a deposit someone could not pay for the next month and dissapear at the end of the current month with hay and straw money outstanding, the stable and fields in a mess etc...

A month's deposit plus paying a month in advance makes perfect sense to me as the YO is covered for those who do vanish in the middle of the night, they can also hold this morning to cover wormers etc.. if they bill at the end of the month too :)
Click to expand...

Yes, fair point. I've seen good YO's getting ripped off by liveries doing moonlight flits and they are always the ones who leave stables and fields in a mess, as well as hay bills unpaid.
 
The last yard I was on there was a 6week deposit and you pay at the start of the month for the month ahead. The yard had a few people that just wouldn't pay the bills.

They did start taking the passports in too, even though it was DIY as still someone didn't pay for 2 months, hay, wormer, bedding bills weren't paid and they broke a few jump poles aswell
 
if its only a couple weeks or up to a month i ask 30 - 40 pounds deposit thisd secures the stable. and i deduct this off the first bill.

Had to many say yes i am coming , turn away a few people then the person says sorry i am not moving.
 
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