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Legal Focus Avoiding Horse Boarding Disputes – Options for Stables and Owners
Avoiding Horse Boarding Disputes – Options for Stables and Owners
Julie I. Fershtman, Attorney at Law www.equinelaw.net
Disputes sometimes occur between boarding stables and horse owners. Occasionally, they become lawsuits. From the standpoint of a law yer who has served boarding and training stables as well as horse owners in these disputes for decades, here are two common disputes and ways that each party can protect themselves.
Dispute: Horse owners believe boarding stables gave their horses sub-standard care, causing injury or death to the horses.
I have handled numerous lawsuits involving these claims. In one case, a horse was kicked in the leg by a pasture mate and had to be eu thanized. Another involved a breeding farm that stabled broodmares and arranged for on-site breeding to its stallion; one day, the stable’s attending veterinarian palpated the mare to check her condition before breeding, but the veterinarian accidentally perforated the mare, and she was later euthanized. The owner sued the veterinarian but also blamed the stable for not monitoring the mare hours before she died. To protect themselves, boarding stable man agers and trainers have a few options:
1. Use well-worded liability releases (where allowed by law) pertaining to the horse.
Stables that include releases in their board ing contracts (where allowed by law) would be wise to pay special attention to the language. If possible, have a lawyer draft or review it. Never assume that the same release language that is designed to protect the stable against claims of injured people will equally protect the stable against claims involving injured horses. Details matter, especially with liability waiver/release agreements and clauses. Years ago, I defended a stable that was sued by a boarder whose horse was attacked by another horse in the pasture. The stable had no way of knowing of a problem as the injuries were beneath the horse’s winter blanket and not visible. Because of the release in the stable’s boarding contract, I quickly convinced the judge to dismiss the lawsuit.
2. Buy liability insurance. Standard com mercial liability insurance policies are not designed to protect stables from claims in volving injury to or loss of a boarded horse. In fact, policies often have exclusions that prevent coverage for these claims. Discuss with your insurance agent buying optional coverage designed to protect stables against claims involving negligent care to a boarded horse. This is called a “care, custody, and con trol” endorsement (sometimes called “bailee
liability insurance” coverage).
3. Make sure your boarding contracts address
your services. Stables have every incentive to list or at least describe their services. Years ago, I defended a stable in a lawsuit brought by a horse owner whose horse was attacked by an other horse in the pasture. The suit claimed the stable wrongly pastured her horse in a group pasture instead of an individual paddock. The stable disagreed, noting that it offered no in dividual paddocks, and the owner approved a group pasture for weeks. Unfortunately, noth ing was in writing. Until the case resolved, each party faced large legal fees as they tried to prove what the agreement was.
Horse owners have options, as well. Here are two of them:
Equine mortality and major medical insur ance. Certainly, equine insurance does not protect owners against improper care to their horses, but it might at least provide funds to help pay veterinary bills and buy a new horse. You and your lawyer can evaluate your rights against the stable, but vet bills need to be paid.
Insist on a contract. Boarding contracts can benefit horse owners. Horse owners who want their horses to receive special attention, such as extra grain or hay or a different turnout arrangement, can benefit by including those services in the contract. In the example fur ther above, if the horse owner wanted her horse pastured alone, when the stable nor mally has group pasture arrangements, the horse owner can insist that the boarding con tract include that requirement. As an extra measure, horse owners might want to remind stable staff of these agreed-upon services by posting signage on the horse’s stall.
Dispute: Customers fail to pay their bills.
Every stable has encountered problems of boarders who fail to pay their boarding fees on time. Here are some ideas:
1. Include within your boarding contract the right to recover interest (as the state law per mits) on unpaid balances. State laws differ on recoverable interest rates so be careful before using forms from other states or from other ar rangements (such as credit card agreements).
2. Consider including attorney fee clauses through which the boarder agrees to pay these fees if the stable brings suit to enforce the contract.
3. Understand your state’s stablemen’s lien statute before taking any drastic action, such as selling off or leasing a boarded horse due to unpaid board. This author has written for years about these laws. States differ.
4. Even though a state law might allow the stable to hold the boarded horse for non-payment of fees, consider whether to ask the boarder to leave and then sue later to collect the unpaid board. Especially with smaller debts, the stable might be able to bring a collection lawsuit in small claims court to avoid the expense of a lawyer.
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Boarders have options in unpaid board settings. Here are three of them:
Try to arrange a payment plan with the stable. Making a good faith ef fort to address the debt could discourage the stable from taking drastic action such as a stablemen’s lien sale of the horse. If the stable allows an installment payment plan, get it in writing.
Consider a shared use leasing arrangement to reduce your expenses. As this author has written for years and in her books, shared use arrange ments can be beneficial to reduce upkeep costs associated with horse ownership. However, these arrangements can also bring serious liability risks. Plan ahead with a contract, including a release (where allowed by law). Also, discuss with your insurance agent purchasing extra insurance (such as a Personal Horse Owner’s Liability Insurance policy).
Call BARB at 864-804-8664 or AMANDA at 864-415-2526
www.ggtfooting.com
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Read boarding contracts carefully before you sign. This author is aware of a horse owner who signed a boarding contract without noticing that he agreed to board his horse there for two years, with no option to leave early. Problems occurred a few months into the arrangement when the owner wanted to remove his horse, only to learn of legal complexities to break the contract. Make sure you understand what you are signing.
27.01.2020 12:05:50
This article does not constitute legal advice. When questions arise based on specific situations, direct them to a knowledgeable attorney.
Julie Fershtman, one of the nation’s most experienced Equine Law practitioners, is a Shareholder with Foster Swift Collins & Smith, PC, in Michigan. She has successfully litigated equine cases in 18 jurisdictions nationwide and has tried cases in 4 states. She is listed in The Best Lawyers in America and received the American Bar Association (ABA) “Excellence in the Advancement of Animal Law Award.” Her speaking engagements span 29 states. The ABA recently published her new 372-page book called “Equine Law & Horse Sense,” and it is available for purchase on Amazon and through the ABA. For more information, please visit www.equinelaw.net
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