What to do about equine insurance

When it comes to equine insurance, navigating through all of the different companies, packages, and policies to find the best one for you and your horse can be a bit of a nightmare. And not to mention expensive! In the last few years, the cost of insuring horses has sky-rocketed and companies are becoming less inclined to pay out for veterinary treatment or loss of use, leaving a lot of horse owners to question whether or not it is even a worthwhile investment.

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying ‘you can’t put a price on your health’, and I’m sure the same sentiment applies to your four-legged friends too. But when you’re forking out hundreds to thousands of pounds per year to cover your horse, only to have a lengthy battle to receive compensation, can add extra stress on top of an already worrying time. 

What exactly is equine insurance?

Equine insurance provides coverage in the event that your horse becomes ill or dies. This coverage can come in the form of paying off vet bills and helping to cover the costs of medical supplies, or paying out a sum of money should your horse die or be rendered unusable for their given job (loss of use).

Horses are a large investment and soon become valued members of the family. Seeing them suffer or in pain is the last thing anybody wants to witness of a loved one, so veterinary care or euthanasia are the only choices- unfortunately, neither option is cheap. Equine insurance helps to bridge the gap between getting your horse the attention it needs and covering those mounting bills.

Aside from horse insurance, many equine insurance policies also offer a range of other insurance options to cover you if you keep your horses on your property, run a business with horses, or are involved in a riding-related incident. For people who make a living working with horses, insurance is an essential aspect of the business and in many instances, they cannot operate without it.

There are six main types of equine insurance:

1.     Major medical

2.     Surgical

3.     Full mortality

4.     Limited mortality

5.     Loss of use

6.     Personal liability

You don’t have to have your horse insured for all of these either, you can select the coverage that best suits your horse. If you enjoy a bit of happy hacking in the sunshine and the occasional bit of flatwork in the arena, loss of use or surgical coverage may not be deemed necessary. For sports horses competing regularly and at a high level, the risk of injury increases, so surgical coverage might be more applicable. For competition horses with a job to do, loss of use allows for compensation if the horse should be injured and unable to perform the job they were bought to do.

There are a number of limitations imposed by equine insurance companies to consider too, like the age of the horse or any past injuries or accidents that may make them exempt from coverage in certain areas.

Choosing the right policy

The easiest way to make sure you’re choosing the right policy for you and your horse is to employ a broker or insurance agent. Insurance agents know how the insurance industry operates better than anyone and are able to shop around and find you the best price AND the most comprehensive cover for what you’re looking for. Just make sure that if you’re choosing an insurance agent that they’re specialised in the equine industry, that way they will be able to get you the best possible cover designed specifically for you and your horse.

When it comes to choosing the cover you want, there are a few factors to consider. This will depend on the overall value of your horse as well as what you do with them.  You can insure your horse for 100% of their value (including any increase in price since you bought them) or for a set percentage of their worth. The more expensive your horse, the more expensive the coverage, so it’s up to you to work out what you will be happy to receive in compensation should anything happen.

What are the other options?

Aside from not insuring your horse, there really aren’t any alternatives. However, that doesn’t mean you absolutely have to pay for insurance.

Instead of paying out to a company every month, a lot of people are opting to move the equivalent into savings- like a rainy-day fund. Each month they transfer the money they would have spent on insurance into a pot just in case the worst should happen, and you need to pay for veterinary treatment.

Like everything else, there are pros and cons to this too. The upside is that you know you will pay out for the treatment, rather than arguing with a voice on the other end of the phone for days on end before you see a penny. On the other hand, once the money is gone it’s gone, and it will take a little while to save up enough money again if you need the vet sooner rather than later. Some veterinary treatments, like colic surgery for example, can rack up a hefty bill at the end, particularly if your horse is required to stay in hospital for a few nights. When you go through an insurance provider, you don’t always have to stress about finding that money for yourself, and rather than reimbursing you, they will pay out for it themselves. When you cover the costs yourself, that responsibility falls to you and you won’t always have an alternative to fall back on if you get a nasty surprise when you open the invoice from the vets.

 To insure or not to insure…

Discussing insurance for our equine partners and best friends can be a tough conversation to have. Talking about your horse as a financial asset, rather than your best mate in the barn, isn’t always pleasant and no one wants to dwell on the ‘what if’ scenarios. But they are important conversations nonetheless.

At the end of the day, it all comes down to what you can afford to lose. If you have a top show jumping horse, a higher insurance coverage in the event of damage or death means that you would be able to purchase another horse of a similar calibre.

The fact is, most people with horses would go to any lengths to insure their horse receive appropriate care and treatment. Having an equine insurance policy can give you the comfort that the bulk of treatment costs will be covered, helping to take the financial pressure out of an already upsetting experience.

There is no right answer, and it totally depends on what you do with your horse. There are pros and cons to pocketing the money in case of an emergency, just as there are pros and cons to taking out a specialised equine insurance policy. Before you settle for a policy make sure you’ve done your research and have considered a few options.

With love,

Px

P.S. Don’t have time to do any writing for your equine business? Well then, I’m your girl! Get in touch via email at equinecopywriting@phoebekeogh.com and we can arrange a consultation call, free of charge, so I can get to know you and your business!