Rent a hotse? Opinions please

I have just had a look at their website and they require a deposit of at least £1000 plus if the horse gets permanently injured in your care you will have to pay them them full asking price of the horse prior to injury.

I don't think it is a scam but I do think they have put into place a system to protect their assets which is of course sensible for them to do so.
 
it sounds like a very expensive way to buy a horse and no matter how nice this lady seems she is doing this to make money not out of the goodness of her heart. I'm sure it seems like a viable option to you because you are desperate to have your own horse with a limited ( but not impossible) budget, but please think about it very carefully and have a good look at all your other options before getting yourself into something you may later regret.:)
 
No it's def not 1000 as deposit. I think you must be looking at different people? There people don't have a website yet and they only require 1 month as deposit 150.00. You do have to get them insured though for full value of 3.5k to include LOU
 
engab said:
No it's def not 1000 as deposit. I think you must be looking at different people? There people don't have a website yet and they only require 1 month as deposit 150.00. You do have to get them insured though for full value of 3.5k to include LOU
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Insuring for LOU costs a fortune, and only really works if you insure for vet's bills also. Imo you would be better setting aside all your "rent" money and waiting til the late autumn, when a lot of people are selling up.
 
Bubley898 said:
I would be very wary. The ad says private sale, this is surely a business? Also alarm bells ring when the contact number is a mobile and the email address is a hotmail account. I agree with the earlier comment scammers always sound nice! There are lots of nice older horses out there within your budget. Good luck and be careful.
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This^^^^^^^.

This person is running a business, in other words, a dealer (and I have nothing against dealers who run their business honestly).
I bought a horse earlier this year which would be suitable as a first horse within your budget and she came with tack, they are out there. My advice would be to renegotiate your loan terms and start looking for your own horse if you think you have enough experience.
 
"Rent a (l)hotse!!!! How much are you willing to pay me??"

Nearly wet myself laughing!!

Just a quick reminder for people to be careful about saying scam as the link to this persons website was posted and it may be seen as libelous!! (sp.)
 
Why not tell us exactly what you are looking for, your budget and location and someone might do some virtual shopping for you or even have just what you are looking for.
 
I think you'd be better looking for a full loan, loan with a view to buy or a horse to buy within your budget. You probably won't find something straight away and can use the time to save more. In the meantime reduce what you pay for your share to reflect the reduced number of days to free up some cash.

Look at adverts for horses advertised up to about £2k as most people will take an offer under the asking price. Also contact the charities as they do sometimes have riding horses, in particular the tb places and the bhs assisted rehoming scheme. There are good horses out there for your budget but you may have to compromise a bit. Consider if you could cope with a horse with a vice or sweet itch or something else that lowers its value we looked at a super little horse that was cheap because she cribbed when waiting for her feed. Also look at unpopular breeds, TBs and Arabs tend to be cheaper than average and can still be calm and sensible!
 
Tickles said:
I don;t mean to sound negative but if you only have 1.5k to buy a horse how are you going to pay if it needs e.g. expensive surgery?
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I didn't even have that to pay for my horse when I bought him, I think in cash I only actually paid £50 the rest I have worked to pay off. :D

For the vets bills I have insurance.

Sorry but not everyone has £5k lying around to buy a horse, but that doesn't mean they're not capable of paying for the upkeep of a horse!
 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I don't have the initial outlay but over time could save up. Doesn't mean to say I cannot afford insurance for the vet bill. I realise that the people are running a business, but as I say if the horses are not as described then they will be cutting their nose to spite their face as they will just get the horse back. I see this as a much safer option to buying straight from a dealer, and a private person for that matter. I do not agree with people saying there is a lot for sale at the moment. I think it is very difficult to find a safe horse 15.2hh happy hacker that is safe. They are at least 3k and are snapped up within hours. If any one can find one in my budget i would be very grateful but I do not agree that the market is bad
 
I understand what you are both saying about insurance. The problem is that once a horse has had one occurrence of e.g. colic (picking a common example where expensive surgery may be required), or if anything is picked up in a vetting, it will likely have that excluded from the insurance next year. Which means you will face exactly the same problem, just a year down the line.

I don't have the funds to guarantee a good life for a horse long term. So I share.
 
Yes but that is the chance you take. I am sure many people would not be able to afford to pay for further ops of the insurance has run out etc. With regards to vettings, two of my friends had horses vetted recently, even though the vet passed the horses, the vet told them not to send the vetting to the insurance company - You do not need to provide a vetting under 5k with most insurance companies that way there are no exclusions.
 
The vet saids one of the horses had very slight mud fever - He said that the insurance company could potentially exclude that leg if issues arise. it is just not worth giving it to them as it gives them an excuse not to pay
 
Maybe Im being sinical (sp?) here, but this seems to me a dealer thinking of a new route to make money, signing up to a forum and advertising it?

I apologise if not, but thats the feeling I personally get, very defensive of a company they supposedly have nothing to do with.

bexcy-bee x
 
engab said:
Yes but that is the chance you take. I am sure many people would not be able to afford to pay for further ops of the insurance has run out etc. With regards to vettings, two of my friends had horses vetted recently, even though the vet passed the horses, the vet told them not to send the vetting to the insurance company - You do not need to provide a vetting under 5k with most insurance companies that way there are no exclusions.
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But you are asked whether the horse has had a vetting. Lying to insurance companies is never a sensible move.
 
We lease our school horses and ponies. The people that lease them pay £50 per week for a field kept and £75 per week for a stabled kept.
This covers hay, feed, insurance, vets bills, bedding ect.
They have to be kept here on the premises, they can ride as often as they like ( we work the horses lessons around them being here to the best our abilities)
They get reduced rate show entries and reduced rate lesson prices. None of ours have wanted to compete away from home but they can, they just to get insurance to cover them for off site activities.
Its really popular and we have about 18 out of 32 leased out.
 
bexcy-bee I agree. No one really asking for advice generally has this amount of conviction what they are asking about is so fabulous.
 
Tickles said:
I understand what you are both saying about insurance. The problem is that once a horse has had one occurrence of e.g. colic (picking a common example where expensive surgery may be required), or if anything is picked up in a vetting, it will likely have that excluded from the insurance next year. Which means you will face exactly the same problem, just a year down the line.

I don't have the funds to guarantee a good life for a horse long term. So I share.
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IF the above happened, I have THREE options:
1. Discuss a repayment plan with the vets and pay in installments
2. Pay for it on a credit card
3. Borrow the money off my parents

I like the way someone that doesn't own a horse insinuates that if you can't afford £5k lump sums you can't afford a horse.

Also, if my horse required colic surgery twice in the space of a year then I'd have to question if it was worth putting him though surgery...
 
Dizzle said:
IF the above happened, I have THREE options:
1. Discuss a repayment plan with the vets and pay in installments
2. Pay for it on a credit card
3. Borrow the money off my parents

I like the way someone that doesn't own a horse insinuates that if you can't afford £5k lump sums you can't afford a horse.

Also, if my horse required colic surgery twice in the space of a year then I'd have to question if it was worth putting him though surgery...
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I agree with this. Does anyone know any good loan websites? Ive heard pre loved is good.
 
I know some-one who rented a cob that was lame but had to wait 2 months to send it back as per the contract and pay for 'rent' and kept it at part-livery in the mean time.......


Edited to add doesn't appear to be from the same yard as the link unless they have set up another business seperate from their current dealing business......
 
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That is my concern. I do not know the full t's and c's but looking at s.cobs they have very specific terms all their own way. This is the concerning part
 
When it comes down to it, the initial purchase price is the cheapest bit (unless it's a super-duper competition horse ;) ) of owning your own horse. The Vet's bills, feed bills, etc... add up very quickly.

I personally would never consider 'renting' a horse. I have full loaned before and TBH I much prefer owning, but that is just my preference and I understand that some people like to loan. This 'rent' thing doesn't sound right to me. :(

I think that £1500 is actually a possible budget to buy at the moment. You really should be able to find a nice average neddy for that and if you put the 'rent money' into the pot each week, you'll soon reach £2k.
 
To be honest I really don't see what you would gain by renting and then buying. If you want to be sure the horse is suitable try a loan with a view to buy, if you want the option of returning an unsuitable horse try a reputable dealer.

The rent to buy could work, but there are so many pitfalls. Suppose you rent a horse, it arrives and within one week it is lame and cannot be ridden. You then have to pay for two months' rent and upkeep before you can return it. When you return it, it is still lame, the owner claims you caused this, but the insurance says it was a pre-existing condition and won't pay up. Now the owner is holding on to your deposit and you need to take them to court and clarify the question of the injury which will cost you expert witness opinions, time and money!

Best either share, loan from a private home or buy outright.
 
after reading the whole threadi dont see the point in putting my view accross. every one on this page has offerd very good advice and you have done nothing but dissagree or ignore it.
why bother posting if you have made up your mind already?
 
I am not ignoring anyone i have taken everyones advice on board. I understand that this rent option is complicated and there are lots of cons to pros. I really would rather buy than loan -looking for 15 -16hh middleweight safe horse. not worried about age. In the eastern/south east region
 
I know you're not ignoring people - I think you would really like it if this renting thing worked out, which is fair enough, but if I were in your shoes, I would prefer to rent / lease from an established company with a good reputation.

Have you searched adverts on local riding club websites? There are always interesting adverts there (at least in my area!). Or go to their shows and talk with ring stewards / organizers to see if there's anything going by word of mouth.

And yes, £1500 is not a great deal of money, but if you can provide a great home, there are lots of sellers out there who would value that over sale price.
 
I can't say that I like the idea of a horse being passed from home to home, in what could be quick succesion, when ideally it would take around 6 months to really settle. How would you know how things went for it in a previous rented home ? You could end with a very anxious horse that could have been through several inexperienced hands. Just not right for the horses welfare. OK if staying on it's own yard & having a lease deal with different riders over a period of time though, different all together..
 
Dizzle said:
I didn't even have that to pay for my horse when I bought him, I think in cash I only actually paid £50 the rest I have worked to pay off. :D

For the vets bills I have insurance.

Sorry but not everyone has £5k lying around to buy a horse, but that doesn't mean they're not capable of paying for the upkeep of a horse!
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I agree :)
 
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