Unlike other insurances, people usually choose not to get the insurance for their horses. The major reason behind this aspect is the cost of the insurance. Most horse owners do not realize the true value of insuring their horse.
Horse insurance is trickier than other pet insurance and decision of taking an insurance should be based upon the value of the horse. Horse owners are supposed to weigh the worth of their horse by checking its record and sale price. This can be done with the help of an expert horse insurance underwriter and people should ensure that their horse in neither under insured nor over insured. Typically a horse which is worth less than $15,000 and age less than 15 years can will have 3% of its worth as annual insurance premium. Therefore, for example, it would require $300 in a year for providing full mortality coverage to a $10,000 worth horse. This type of insurance can provide coverage against death irrespective to the cause of death.
Benefits of Horse Insurance
There are various benefits of horse insurance where some benefits are obvious while others can be conditional. There is total coverage on aspects such as:
- Horse loss due to horse straying or theft
- Protection in case of horse’s death
Apart from these obvious benefits, there can be other benefits like:-
- Tack and saddlery
- Permanent loss of usage
- Vet fees
- Disposal
- Horse-drawn vehicle
- Personal accident cover
For proper categorization, the utmost benefit of horse insurance can be considered as third party insurance covering the public liability. This provides insurance against any injury to the other individuals or damage to the property by the horse. This type of benefit should only be considered for maintaining the fiscal stability. If there is a sudden death or serious injury caused by the horse, then horse owner can be liable for the prison. However, there is insurance for the pet owner in case if the pet owner gets hurt by one’s own horse.
Most of the companies do not cover routine maintenance expenses but provide coverage against the illness or injury. Moreover, people need to check if insurance company is providing coverage against the severe illnesses like surgery for treating colic. Mortality insurance can help in covering the horse purchase amount only if the horse is useful, not only affordable. For race horses, there is well-defined section of permanent loss of usage but people need to specify the usage level of the horse. Theft is again covered only for competitive horses. This theft coverage should also cover the trailer and tack theft conditions.
Types of Horse Insurance
Mortality Insurance
When it comes to the mortality insurance, horse owners need to be very specific about the insurance contract. They need to ensure if they need to link the vet with the insurance company or vet is already registered inside the company. It is based upon a good understanding between horse owner, veterinarian and insurance company where decision making is supposed to be quick for avoiding the bad inferences of the future.
Horse Medical Insurance
There is medical insurance for the horses which is generally categorized into two –
- First type of medical insurance covers ligament damage, colic and other related injuries plus post-operative medical care.
- Other type of medical insurance covers major aspects like surgery and other vet care non-surgical methods.
Both of the insurances are required to be purchased along with the mortality policy. Total insurance expenditure can be up to $5000 with the cost of these policies varying between $75 and $150.
Peril Policy Insurance
This is one of the addendums in the horse insurance and horse owners should ensure that their insurance covers peril policies. There are various uncertain perils like lightning, fire and other transport accidents. It is more of a life insurance policy where all the death causes are considered in the policy.
Loss-of-Use Policy Insurance
Loss-of-policy is in direct accordance with the mortality insurance policy but there are some variations in the loss-of-use policy. This policy works upon the decreased worth of the horse due to illness or injury which restricts the horse from performance as per the standards. All the horse owners should notify the insurance company as soon as horse comes across any disease, illness or injury.
Breeding Infertility Insurance
It provides coverage against the stallions or mares which undergo reproductive failure.
Major Companies Providing Horse Insurance
There are various companies providing most of the aforementioned benefits and types of horse insurance. These companies are Markel Insurance Company, Equine Insurance Underwriters Ltd, Fry’s Equine Insurance and Petplan Equine.
Markel Insurance Company
Markel insurance company is specifically known for providing horse mortality and surgical/medical coverage. They do not provide coverage against vaccinations, teeth floating, castration/spaying, worming etc. At the same time, they reimburse surgical as well as medical expenses due to injury or illness. There is one more condition for it stating that the particular medical condition should not be pre-existing in nature. They assess the horse worth by its stated stud fee or purchased cash price.
Equine Insurance Underwriters Ltd.
They started their business in 1980 with animal mortality writing. They started providing liability insurance in 1985. They provide coverage over following aspects:-
- Animal mortality insurance
- Commercial farm liability
- Farm equipment and buildings insurance
- Veterinarian liability
Fry’s Equine Insurance
They represent one of the oldest equine insurance providers in the country. They provide coverage for following aspects:-
- Mortality
- Club liability
- Owners’ liability
- Farm insurance
- Show liability
- Stable/commercial insurance
Petplan Equine
They are providing quality solutions for the horse insurance for last 20 years. They also provide round-the-clock legitimate advice helpline. Their major coverage aspects are theft, straying and death. At the same time, they provide coverage against vet fees, disposal, permanent loss of usage, personal accident cover, tack and saddlery, third party liability and horse trailer.