Who should sort this out? (long, sorry)

[Binky44]

As most of the country experienced bad weather over the weekend and last few days, I was wondering if anyone had a similar problem to me. Where myself and my sister keep our horses is really a small holding rather than a yard. The old man who we call the yard owner is in his seventies and a real pain in the backside. He thinks the facilities are great, well, we get electric in the stables when they turn the power on, and water in the taps! We have stables, all year turn out and that's it. (I am greatful for the turn out).

Over the weekend one of the field shelters was blown over into the field my horse is in from my sister's field taking the fence with it. We couldn't put the horses out for that reason on Sun or Mon. Come yesterday evening he has repaired the fence, but the shetler which is smashed up, is piled up in my field and I think he expects me to clear it away. Needless to say I can't put my horse back in this field. We pay for use of fields but not a particular one. I know he won't put the shelter back up but I don't think I should be clearing all this and putting up a new shelter. I pay £20 per week for this and I normally use this field in the winter as the other fields are resting. I will have to put her in one with no grass, which will cost me more in the long run with extra hay. We have no contracts but I am not happy having to build a new shelter and clearing up the mess in the dark after work with a torch. And now he is muttering about the price going up as well. I could try and move the smashed up wood to another field, but that will really annoy him. Any thoughts?

 

[Rambo]

I think you'll be wasting your time trying to get the YO to do it. Your whole arrangement sounds pretty informal to me !? If I were you, i'd clear the rubbish into a pile and have a good bonfire

 

[airedale]

yep - I'd do the same - but somewhere where you can fence off the bonfire area and make sure all bits of metal and nails are picked up - time for a metal detector or a large magnet

try and get one of those mobile shelters - they have a resale value if you ever want to get rid of them later

 

[Binky44]

I'd like to put him on top of the bonfire! He's stolen my spade as well!! Trouble is it is so close to where I live (walkable). I'm just so frustrated with it.

 

[starsky]

Why don't you talk to him and see what he is expecting you to do? You imply you're assuming this all so far? See if you can come to some sort of compromise.

 

[Binky44]

I have tried to talk to him. I have been banging on his door for the past two evenings but he won't answer. I have been at this place for a few years and I know how he works. He is even thinking of putting the electric on only at certain times and if we aren't there on time, off it will go. Where I work I can't promise I will be at the yard at a certain time. He certainly wouldn't let me have a bonfire, we have to sweep stray hay off the grass!!

 

[Maesfen]

Just what do you expect for £20 when you say yourself it is not a proper yard? It will be pin money for the YO at the same time as doing a favour to you by having your horses there which must be convenient for you else you would find somewhere better.
Of course he thinks you have it all with electric, stables, turnout and water; at your age he would still be pulling water from a well and milking by hand and parrafin lamp!

I'm not being sarky, just stating a fact.
If you want better facilities then I suggest you move as he is not likely to improve things at great expense just for your benefit, your rent money would not make it worth it for him.

I take it from your report that you didn't offer to help with the fencing and are just having a moan about the remains being in your field well it sounds to me very unfair to expect a man of his age to do all that for you when you won't help yourselves either,. If you're disabled in some way then apologies, fair enough but you have made it sound that you think you shouldn't have to bother because you pay some pin money to him; that's not exactly the attitude to take with someone that age I think as without your horses there he wouldn't even have had to bother mending the fence as soon as he did. Please have a bit of give and take and respect for his age; offer to move the wood into another part of the place or chop it up for logs for him if need be as if you need him more than he needs you it's far nicer to be pleasant and put a bit of effort in than to be thought of as a pain in the bum.

 

[vicster]

Maybe you should have a word with him and see what he says - he may suggest something else to you

 

[meandmyself]

If you came banging on my door, I wouldn't answer either!

Why not phone him and speak to him like that?

If you don't want to/can't move the wood, can you fence it off so your horse can't get at it?

 

[Binky44]

Thanks for your comments. He has two very able sons and a guy who doesn't pay for his horse who does jobs around the place. He owns the yard and the house, and yes I have endometriosis and have had a brain haemorrhage so no I won't be straining anything to move it. Give him a break you say, yes he is getting on, but it doesn't stop him from trying to grope the women there or making lewd comments. I am simply asking for advice about what I should do. I'm glad you think it's pin money and he is so poor, which he isn't. I will be looking for somewhere else when I manage to sell my house and move from the area, but at present I am a bit stuck there.

I didn't offer to mend the fence either as I was up trying to sort the horses with a torch and without electric as he had switched it off. Why should I anyway when he has plenty of people can do it. You may think I am just moaning and being unfair, but I have helped him out no end in the past.

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

This is all part of a post as below:
http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/1529361/an/0/page/0#1529361

The OP is not being unreasonable in this matter at all. If anything the YO is taking the mick.

The age of the YO doesn't matter, if he expects to have people paying to keep their horses on his land then he has certain obligations aswell.

Turning off power because he thinks you are there late is extremely petty. The fences are his, therefore they are his responsibility to repair. He does not have to do it himself he can always have someone in to do things.

To say that 'as without your horses there he wouldn't even have had to bother mending the fence as soon as he did' is ridiculous. The horses are there! He wants to receive payment then he must maintain the place.

You mention 'Give & Take' it appears that the sisters give the YO money & the YO takes it & does precious little else.

 

[Binky44]

Thanks Toby Z. I didn't realise sis had posted. It's been going on a while. I'm glad you read her post.

 

[magic104]

I have to agree I dont expect to have to repair roofs, fencing etc. I assume the field shelter belonged to the land owner, therefore clearing it is his responsibility. £20pw is about av for grazing & stable & does not justify him not clearing up or fixing the fencing as by taking the money he has entered a contract. Though we only know one side of the story I am afraid I think he is unreasonable.

 

[PoppyPony]

i think the YO should sort it out as you are paying him for haveing a field shelter in the first place.

i am in the same situation as you but i don't have elec, and mostly water doesn't come out of the taps lol but at least 70+ yr old YO isn't around much

 

[RLF]

i must agree with Toby,
If you are paying for a service you should get a service. It is his responsibility to maintain the yard and fences. I don't think £20 for a stable and field is cheap, I am paying £15 for exactely the same deal, at my last yard i had the use of 3 schools and a walker plus loads of other things included for £25 per week.
Does the field shelter belong to you or him, if its his he should replace it.
I would move if i were you, especially if hes gonna turn off the electricity.

 

[Binky44]

It's his field shelter. We have made the decision to find somewhere else. Problem is we are hoping to move in the spring out of the area and I don't want to unsettle the horses as my cob is very sensitive and doesn't settle very well. But to be honest I want to be able to give her more quality time during the week in the winter rather than only being able to ride at weekends. I guess we will have to see the winter through and then make the move.

 

[simone666]

are you sure you not related to him

 

[Maesfen]

[ QUOTE ]
are you sure you not related to him

[/ QUOTE ]

PMSL!

Without the full story from the start it's difficult to be correct in the answers you give, I think you'll agree. If I came over harsh it's because I was always taught to respect my elders which sadly doesn't seem to be happening very much nowadays and the poster, to me, came over as a bit demanding of an old man. I was not to know he was a cantankerous old sole!!
It's an obvious response to me to say offer to help, it doesn't matter if he's got Superman on hand usually, the offer should be made to be polite, it is just good manners, sorry if you didn't like it being pointed out. I would hope that anyone on any livery in the same circumstances would have offered to help make things safe again. Just because you pay a peppercorn rent doesn't absolve you; surely for your horse's sake you would want things put right as soon as possible and if that means you have to help, what's the big deal with that?

Now a bit more of the background has been told I feel sorry for the sisters but at the same time, if he's not a pleasant person (and many older people, me included, get quite cranky very easily for nothing at all!) then why stay there just because it is convenient even though they are hoping to move in the spring to another area. If it is that unpleasant then it would be easier to be looking to go now I would have thought.

 

[Binky44]

Unfortunately no I didn't give too much info. We are not children and I am in my thirties. There are five horses there, 4 on £20 per week, so it then doesn't become peppercorn rent for him does it. I'm glad you can probably afford a small fortune but some of us do have to budget a little. He would have to make it safe for the sake of the other horses even if we weren't there. And when we go, other horses will go there!

I am not rude or unpleasant to the old man, I do take umbridge to his suggestive ways and like I said I have helped him a lot in the past. Give and take on both sides! If it was a simple repair job I could of easily have fixed it, but the whole fence was down and the whole shelter had uprooted and the fence was underneath it. There was no way I could have physically have moved it. As for the pile of shelter left, again I am not talking small here and I wasn't expecting the old man to do it on his own.

Perhaps you would like me to fetch his slippers and cook him lunch as well?

 

[jemima]

Well if these two are sisters and share the yard this thread reads strangely!

http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/sh...rue#Post1480727

 

[Binky44]

That's because I was away working that week and she was doing them. Is that ok?

 

[AmyMay]

Could it be that the field shelter will be moved in the near future - once a skip and bodies have been organised??? Not sure why you still can't use the field. As long as the wood is piled neatly there's no reason why the horses will go near it or damage themselves.

And for info - and there's lots of posts regarding prices of Livery - DIY or otherwise - I pay £20 a week for:

All year turnout
Stable
All weather, flood lit surface
Good hacking
Excellent well managed, rotated fields
Late night hay put in stable
Expert advise on hand
Foaling down help next year
The choice of 4 amazing horses to ride and hunt whilst mine is getting fat in the field.

Ooo I could go on and on and on.....

I am happy to help on the yard. I am the only livery - but we have 14 horses there in total. I turnout, bring in, feed, muck out - generally whatever needs doing.

 

[Capriole]

re: cost of rent

i dont think 20 is a peppercorn rent , i pay 65 a month for a large loosebox on a very nice yard with all year turnout and good hacking and facilities and a yard owner who will feed hay and rug on/off (and incidentally is on the ball if i notice a repair, its fixed almost immediately)

 

[OWLIE185]

If he is taking payment from you then there is a 'duty of care'.

Where damage has occured he is responsible for putting it back in good order and if he fails to do so in a reasonable time then you will need to get some legal advice and find out if you can get a contractor to do it and settle the bill and then claim off him.

The fact that you have been paying him regularly means that you in effect have a contract with him and that he can not throw you off without good reason.

Get some legal advice.