URGENT advice needed please for a friend re removal of horses

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cluedo

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A good friend of mine has two horses at a well known equestrian centre on full training/sales livery at a huge cost per week. They have been there two months and she has not been billed yet despite trying to get hold of them by telephone, email or text. She called in there yesterday unnanounced with a friend and the horses were in a terrible state. There was no bedding on top of rubber matting, and beds were full of urine and poo, one horse had no water at all, other horse had 3" in the bottom of a bucket, no hay for either horse. Both horses had medium weight stable rugs on and were dripping with sweat and very very distressed in an indoor barn where my friend thinks the heat must have been nearing 40 degrees. They asked the staff when the last time the horses had been worked (after being promised they would be worked daily) and the staff couldn't remember when they were worked last. Horses not been turned out either (both stallions and kept at a stallion facility), both horses are seriously underweight with skin conditions where the urine has burnt their skin.

She managed to get into the office and took the passports back. Obviously she wants to move the horses asap for their own welfare. She has not been billed yet so has no idea how much they are going to try and charge her, but its apparent the horses have not been trained, or cared for adequately.

So, can she remove the horses without notice and dispute the bill. I am sure they will try and stop her doing this. Obviously she is not happy about paying for a possibly massive livery bill when the horses haven't even had the basics done to them and are in such bad condition. Luckily she took a video camera with her yesterday and videod everything as evidence of the state her horses are in.

Help urgently please. She hates confrontation but is in a terrible state at the state of her horses and is seriously worried about them. They went there in show condition and now look like hatracks.
 
Tell her to get her lorry, and go and get the horses.

Take another person with her - and also her cheque book.

Tell her to do it now.
 
Get them out of there........ As AmyMay says take somebody with her and her cheque book. They need to be out of there ASAP.... Poor things.

Keeps us informed...
 
She is trying desperately to find some transport as she doesnt have any of her own. She is reluctant to pay the bill when its in dispute - happy to pay something but not all of it. She can't write a cheque and then cancel it as its a criminal matter to do that.

Can she take the horses and then negotiate the bill with them. I know a garage can have a lien over a car but not sure about livestock.

PS she is over 200 miles away from horses. I dont have transport or I'd do it for her.
 
I would remove them immediately and say send the bill - if they are as bad as you say, ensure plenty of photographic evidence and if possible, take a witness - ideally someone who is independant rather than a friend.

When the bill arrives, then you dispute it on the grounds that the contract was not adhered to - assuming there was one, or that the horses condition is such that it will cost xxx to restore them to as they were. Ideally you should have photos of when they went to the yard to prove this.

May well be worth getting some legal advice to ensure that your friend does everything by the book when the dispute arises.

The main thing is get the horses out now and in proper care.
 
I agree! Go and pick them up, dispute payment later!!!

I had two horses sent to stud last year, to cut a long storey short, they came home with strangles!!!!!!!

I picked up instantly, and recouped them myself, I also said i would take to court if they wanted money, i also refused to pay the studs vet bill for my horses as he had run tests etc on them with out my agreement,

I won! it didnt go to court as his reputation was at stake, and I didnt pay!!

Give her my luck and encouragem,ent and send her now!
 
She can remove her horses and dispute the bill - agree with AmyMay that she takes someone with her, but I wouldn't be paying them the full bill.

Maybe take chequebook so you can pay something to cover any costs and leave the remaining amount disputed.
 
i would take them if she has a video to prove such going ons, then she has every right to remove her horses .
if it was me, i would not pay for anything due to being negleted on behalf on the trainer .
may i ask why its taken her all this time to go to have a look, because if it was my horse i would of gone just after two wks to make sure ,not two months.
 
Dont pay anything, call Citizens Advice and ask where you stand on part payment, you don't want this to be considered aknowledgement of the debt. Take in writing a list of your dispute over payment so that you can simply swap it for the horses.
 
I am not sure they will want bad publicity as its a big place - I have seen video and its a bad as she says it is.

I am waiitng for her to call me back if she has found transport and I'll meet her half way.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I would remove them immediately and say send the bill - if they are as bad as you say, ensure plenty of photographic evidence and if possible, take a witness - ideally someone who is independant rather than a friend.

When the bill arrives, then you dispute it on the grounds that the contract was not adhered to - assuming there was one, or that the horses condition is such that it will cost xxx to restore them to as they were. Ideally you should have photos of when they went to the yard to prove this.

May well be worth getting some legal advice to ensure that your friend does everything by the book when the dispute arises.

The main thing is get the horses out now and in proper care.

[/ QUOTE ]

I would try and take a vet/professional as a witness if at all possible. But I agree, get them out of there asap.
 
I don't really know these things, it sounds great that she had a video camera with her and have evidence of how it was when she was there. I would presume it would be a good thing to really look through any contracts both once and twice and make notes.

A problem that I can think of, is that it can be difficult to prove she has not received any bills also the owners of the centre could possibly argue that she should have understood that there was something wrong when she didn't get any bills and that it also is her responsibility to make them aware abut that she hadn't received any bills?
 
Once you get them out of there I would also report them to the RSPCA - you don't want anyone elses horses to suffer. They will need plenty of pictures, not just of the horses, but of the dirty stables, empty water buckets etc.
 
She has been asking them for over a month for a bill and they have never replied to her, hence making the long trip yesterday to see them. And the owner was not there to give her the bill.
 
She is going to take them to Staffs to a yard where she can look after them. She needs them somewhere to get them sold and produced really but for now the main thing is getting them well again.
 
Unless her contract with them has a lien clause she is fine to remove them immediately without further notice - and even if it does her responsibility as an owner to their welfare would indicate that she could remove them as the yard is clearly breaching any and all agreements they had with her.
 
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wish I had horsey transport I would of come and helped no matter how far away they are, they sound in a terrible state
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I would be heart broken at seeing my horses like this and very angry. Not that being angry would make things different. You trust these professional people to do their job and pay them the money for doing so .Get them out. Are any of the other horses on full livery in the same condition. I wouldnt want to part with a penny to this YO
 
They are in warwickshire, I have found somewhere for them to go in Aylesbury. She used a horse transporter to get them there but no one is available short notice (I know cos I've rung a few) or they don't want to get involved in a dispute.
 
I would hire a professional transporter, that would put the wind up the facility. I would also then dispute any bills saying she had to pay the cost of having the horses removed and setting it off against the bills.

TBH once the horses are out I would sue their arses off!!
 
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