VETERAN HORSE INSURANCE

At KBIS, whilst we have a wide range of cover available for veteran horses, the policies are a continuation of our standard Leisure and Competition horse insurance, rather than labelled ‘veteran horse insurance’. This allows us to cater for older horses that are still in work, out and about competing, as well as those that are having a quieter life hacking or retired to the field.

You can then choose to add additional cover such as vet fees, permanent loss of use, personal accident and legal liability to your policy.

Whilst there is no strict cut off point at which a horse is transferred onto a veteran policy at KBIS, cover does start to become limited from the year the horse turns 16. How the cover changes are outlined below in ‘How much can I insure my veteran horse for?’ and ‘what vet fee insurance is available for my veteran horse?’

As horses get older, inevitably the amount they are worth tends to decrease. As a result, Underwriters limit the maximum they will insure horses for at certain ages. These are as outlined in the table below:

For older horses valued above these amounts, we can approach Underwriters to see whether they would be willing to increase the Sum Insured on a case-by-case basis.

Often, the reason people in choose to insure their horses is for vet fee cover. This doesn’t usually change as a horse gets older, in fact, owners may feel it becomes more important than ever. If you are looking to take out full vet fee cover for accident sickness and disease, the horse must be insured for a value in order for Underwriters to offer this. It is possible to underinsure your horse by up to 50% of the current market value, so this can be a way to bring down the insurance premium if the vet fee cover is most important to you.

This depends on the cover you have for the horse. Vet fees are reduced in line with the cover outlined above (in ‘What vet fee cover is available for my veteran horse?’) and reductions to the value your horse will be insured for is as detailed in ‘how much can I insure my veteran horse for?’.

As horses get older, it is only natural that more things start to go wrong with them. As a result, they are a higher risk to Underwriters and consequently, the cover they are willing to offer reduces to reflect this.

Providing the horse has had no previous dental issues, which would therefore result in an exclusion being applied, and full accident, sickness and disease cover is in place, then dental cover is included under the vet fee section where there is a diagnosed condition that requires treatment.

Complementary treatment refers to the section that covers treatments that are recommended by a vet, but not provided by them directly such as physio, remedial farriery etc. Whether this is included depends on the level of vet fee cover you have taken out. To check whether this on your policy, please refer to your Certificate of Insurance.

Again, this depends on the level of veterinary fee cover taken out. Your Certificate of Insurance will confirm whether this is included or not.

Yes, providing your horse is in the correct class of use for the level you are training and competing at, you are covered to compete your older horse under the policy.

Mortality and Theft is the starting point of your insurance. It is the benefit paid following the death or euthanasia of the horse or if the horse is lost or stolen and not found. This benefit will be the sum insured/market value of the insured horse

You can then choose to add additional cover such as vet fees, permanent loss of use, personal accident and legal liability to your policy.

Most insurance companies will offer All Risks of Mortality, which covers the loss of your horse due to accident, illness or disease. At KBIS we refer to this as Basic Cover.

You can also purchase Mortality Cover for accidental, external and violent injuries only, this cover is usually offered when the horse becomes older and the risk of mortality as a result of an illness or disease becomes to high. At KBIS when a horse reaches 26 years of age cover is then limited to accidental, external and violent injuries only.

Purchase price is the price that you paid to take on the ownership of the horse. Market value refers to the amount that would generally be paid for a horse of a similar age, sex, breeding and ability. Sum Insured is the amount you choose to insure your horse for.

The market value will therefore obviously alter while the horse is in your ownership depending on what you do with him/her, age and any injuries sustained etc. When insuring a horse that has not been recently purchased you need to look at their market value and similarly at renewal the market value will come into play rather than the purchase price.

To establish the market value of a homebred horse you would generally consider the stud fee plus their bloodlines. When the horse/pony has achieved a competition record this can then also be taken into account.

If you have recently purchased your horse most people choose to insure their horse for the purchase price. You can choose to under insure your horse in order to reduce your premium but before choosing to do this you should ask yourself how much it would cost you and how much can you afford to pay to purchase another horse if the worst should happen.

Although under insuring is an option, most insurance companies will not under insure a high value horse below a certain value.

Age will also affect how much you can insure your horse for; generally, as horses get older, insurance companies place restriction on the value for which they can be insured.

At KBIS, limitations on the sum insured apply once the horse reaches 17 years of age; however,  we do look at every case individually and are always happy to approach our Underwriters in exceptional circumstances:

Age Limitations on Sum Insured:

As a general rule you cannot insure for a value above the purchase price for a horse/pony that has been recently purchased. Your insurance company will most probably advise you that they can reviewed the value in 6 months when, for instance you may have built up a successful competition record.

You will only receive the sum insured if this is a true reflection on the horse’s market value. It is important to remember that an insurance company will pay out for the market value of the horse at the time of loss up to the sum insured. If the market value is deemed to be lower than the sum insured, any claim settlement will be adjusted accordingly.

Basic mortality insurance only pays out if the horse needs to be euthanised immediately due to severe unrelenting pain. The British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA) has issued guidelines for vets when dealing with mortality insurance, these can be grouped into three scenarios when a horse is euthanised from an insurance perspective:

1. Immediate emergency euthanasia where a condition is so severe that immediate euthanasia is required to relieve incurable and excessive pain and no other options of treatment are available.
2. Critical illness or injury necessitating non-immediate euthanasia, the horse exhibits signs of severe and unremitting pain that can be controlled by safe and effective levels of analgesic medication in the short term but, in the opinion of the attending veterinary surgeon, cannot be managed in the long term and no other options of treatment are available. In these cases insurers must be advised prior to euthanasia to allow them the opportunity to get a second opinion.
3. Injury or illness which, whilst career ending and the horse may be permanently lame, can be managed on low levels of medication and the horse can be retired. Owners may decide that the right answer for them and the horse is to choose to put the horse to sleep, but this would not be a valid mortality claim. Although it may represent a Permanent Loss of Use claim if this level of cover was included in the policy.

To view The BEVA Guidelines click here

Legal Liability is one of the most important areas to consider taking out cover. It provides the policy owner with cover against their liability to a third party or damage to third party property, for example if your horse broke free when tied up in your yard and then proceeded to cause an accident on the road.

Insurance companies may also refer to this cover as Public Liability or Third Party Liability.

Although not law it is one area of cover that should not be overlooked. Legal Liability cover is generally not very expensive to add on to a horse policy and will increase your premium by around £15 but could save you thousands in the event of a claim.

Membership with affiliated bodies will sometimes include Legal Liability cover. It is important to check exactly when, where and what it covers you for as it may only provide you with cover when you are riding or competing at one of their events or clinics.

You should never admit to any responsibility or negotiate any kind of settlement. Liability claims can be very complex and your insurance will only be valid if you were legally responsible for the horse at the time of the incident and the incident was a direct result of your negligence.

It is important to notify your insurance company straight away and forward any documentation straight to them without replying. Your insurance company will then deal with any claims against you on your behalf.

Even if your liability to the third party is under dispute the underwriters may decide to settle on economic grounds, this is due to the fees that would be incurred should the incident go to court.

Personal Accident insurance covers you if you sustain a bodily injury through riding, handling, mounting or dismounting the insured horse. Most insurance companies offer two different levels of cover, a lower and higher level.

Cover varies from policy to policy but under a typical KBIS horse insurance policy it would cover the policyholder and any person to whom the policyholder has given permission to ride or handle the horse. Cover would be in accordance to the schedule of benefits as in your policy terms and conditions.

If the horse is being used in a business environment i.e. in a riding school lesson you will not usually be covered; the riding school should have their own Personal Accident cover in place.

When added onto a horse policy Personal Accident cover is not an expensive addition. There would be an increase in premium of around £15 – £30 depending on the level of cover you take out. Personal Accident cover under a horse policy is designed as ‘catastrophe’ cover and is more limited than a specific Personal Accident Insurance Policy.

If the cover available is not adequate for your needs then you should consider taking out a stand alone Personal Accident policy. Additional benefits will include Temporary Total Disability which will pay the policyholder a weekly amount in accordance to the benefit scale if they are temporarily unable to carry out their normal business or occupation. Unlike when added on to a horse policy, when cover is limited to riding or handling the insured horse only, a stand alone personal accident policy will cover you whilst riding any horse and can also include other activiities as well.

Click here to view the cover available under a KBIS standalone Personal Accident policy.

Most insurance companies will insure you for loss or damage to saddles (including stirrup leather and irons) and bridles (including any martingales and harnesses). It is generally the equipment that is used on the insured horse whilst being used for the activities for which it is insured.

You will not be covered for general wear and tear or any damaged caused by, for example vermin. You will also not be covered for rugs, grooming kits, hats and other such items. Such limitations will be noted in the terms and conditions of your policy.

Generally most insurance companies will base the settlement on the actual value at the time of loss, therefore if when you take out your policy your saddle is new you should insure it for its full value. When your policy is up for renewal it may be worth decreasing the value depending on the current condition and market value of the saddle.

The security requirements will vary between insurance companies but with KBIS if your tack is being kept in a yard where there are more than 10 horses then an alarmed tack room would be required. In all other cases the tack must be kept in a secure building and the doors must be locked with a deadlock and any windows securely locked. If you are unable to meet the security requirements then it may be worth speaking to your insurance company as a compromise may be able to be reached.

Such conditions of your insurance policy will be stated in the policy terms and conditions.

Under a horse policy with KBIS your trailer or horse drawn vehicle would be covered whilst immobilised and whilst being towed for any damage or physical loss up to the sum insured.

Such policies would not cover you for any legal liability to third parties, this should be covered under the insurance of the towing vehicle. It would also not include any general wear and tear or mechanical breakdown.

Yes your insurance does provide cover should your trailer or horse drawn vehicle be damaged or destroyed whilst you are towing it, but it only covers the trailer and not the towing vehicle.

You do not need to have your trailer in a secure building but it will need to be immobilised when it is not in use. A wheel clamp and hitch lock would be the ideal but the exact terms will be stated in your policy terms and conditions.

As long as you are not receiving any form of payment for transporting the horse or transporting horses as a business you will normally be covered under your policy. If in doubt you should ask your insurance company.

If you let someone else use your trailer/horse drawn vehicle as a one off and do not receive any payment it would not affect your cover. However if someone is regularly using your trailer, using it for businesses purposes or is partly responsible for its security and maintenance then you should contact your insurance company as this may affect your cover.