Who is responsible for damage caused by horses?

That said, I am not a lawyer but instinct tells me the OP may be held accountable.
Wont be a small bill if the horse decided to destroy several greens. Dont envy you but would be thanking my lucky stars that this didnt involve any fatalities, human or equine.

I used to keep my horse near a golf course and we all (including my horse!) haboured dreams of galloping over it but even then (before 2002) the going rate for damage was £25 PER HOOFPRINT.


A good example of why horse owners and landowners must have public liability insurance. I suspect the OP will have to pay up but there might be grounds to reclaim some of it from the owner of the horses.
 
I'd say the OP.

If you had a contract taken from somewhere like BHS it says in it that you are required to maintain all areas the horses are in to a reasonable standard.

If she's made you aware then it should have been sorted. Had they broken through a decent fenced area then absolutely her responsibility. But you should have fixed the fence, temporarily sectioned it off or provided alternate grazing until it was safe.

However without a contract I expect that she would have to foot the bill and take you to small claims. If I were you I'd sit down and try to come to a fair agreement splitting costs? Both of you should have insurance in place...

Pan
 
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