The type of horse insurance you’ll need depends on your own circumstances and the level of cover you want. It depends on your horse’s age, breed and what you do with them, whether that’s riding, driving, work or showing.
For example, if your horse’s breed is prone to certain medical conditions you might want to find a policy with adequate veterinary cover for that condition, just in case they’re diagnosed in the future. There are a few cover options to choose from:
Standard cover
A regular horse insurance policy will usually cover one aspect as standard, say the vet fees, and then offer a range of optional extras you can add to your policy, like cover for death, straying or theft. You can get cover for your own horse or for one you have on loan. It’ll also usually cover your family for riding your horse. But if you ride other horses that don’t belong to you, you might want to think about a rider policy. Standard cover usually has age limits, for example for foals as young as 30 days, up until your horse is 20 years old.
Cover for older horses
You can get vet fee cover for injuries for mature horses aged 20 years and over – just check if there are any maximum age limits on your policy. Make sure you read your policy carefully to see how much it’ll pay out if your horse is injured or dies before you decide whether to insure your older horse.
Horse rider cover
Rider insurance includes cover for personal accident and dental fees, third party liability and custodial liability as well as emergency vet fees if you have an accident while riding a horse. Rider cover might have an age limit, say 18 to 75 years old, but you can also get young rider insurance for children. These policies will probably have age limits too, usually between five and 18 years old. Any pre-existing conditions that you or your horse have won’t be covered.
