Ask H&H: Buying a horse from a dealer

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You are here: Home / Articles / Horse care

Compiled by Claire Evans

31 August, 2006

Q: I bought a horse from a dealer in June. It was advertised as: dark bay Irish Draught, 7yrs old, show jumped & hunted in Ireland, good to hack out in the heaviest traffic.

When I arrived to see the horse it proved difficult to catch and once caught it appeared timid and thin. The dealer tacked the horse up and a young girl rode it. The dealer assured me that the horse was sound and said that if there was any problems he would give me my money back, so I bought it.

When I collected the horse I asked for its passport. The dealer said he had forgotten it and would post it to me the next day. It never arrived despite repeated requests.

Once I got the horse home it became clear that something was wrong as he became very upset every time I put his saddle on. I rang the dealer who told me that the horse just needed work and to carry on and give him a ring if he continued to do it. I continued for a week, until the horse bucked me off and injured me. I rang the dealer straight away and he said that he would take the horse back.

A week passed and I hadn't heard from him, so I rang again and he said he would come the next day, but he didn't turn up. When I tried to ring him he either didn't answer his phone or put it down. I tried text messages, but got no reply. Not knowing what to do next I rang consumer direct, who said I could not do anything without the dealer's address.

I am at my wits end. I don't know where to turn as I can't afford to buy a horse that isn't fit to be ridden.

A: Legal position

You are in a much stronger position legally having bought the horse from a dealer rather than from a private seller. This is because when a dealer sells a horse, it must be of satisfactory quality and fit for purpose. If it is not, the dealer will be in breach of contract and the buyer will in most circumstances be entitled to return the horse for a full refund, and claim damages for any other costs which they have incurred as a result of the purchase.

Your description of the horse as not accepting the saddle and bucking when ridden means that it is clearly not of satisfactory quality and fit for the purpose for which it was sold, namely a riding horse. You therefore have a good prima facie case against the dealer under the sale of goods legislation. However, your case would be weakened if the dealer either specifically drew your attention to the back problem before the sale, or if the back problem was apparent when you viewed the horse.

You have further rights against the dealer as a result of his promise to refund your money in the event of any problems. There can be no doubt that the horse's behaviour you have described constitutes a problem of sufficient severity for you to ask him to fulfil that promise by refunding your money. The fact that the dealer said he would come to collect the horse when you first spoke to him shows that he accepts this.

Next steps

You say that you do not have the dealer's address. You may not have his residential address, but was the yard where you viewed the horse the dealer's business premises i.e. where he buys and sells horses? If so, the address of that yard is all you need to take the matter further.

As you have tried to contact the dealer by telephone and text message on numerous occasions without success, the next step is to write a "Letter of Claim" to the dealer. This is a formal letter to the dealer setting out your claim against him, written as a forerunner to taking court action. This letter, which should be headed "Letter of Claim", should cover the following points:

(i) full details of the history of the sale: what the advert said, the date of sale, price paid, what the dealer told you about the horse, including his promise to refund your money;

(ii) what happened after the sale: describe the horse's back problem in as much detail as you can. If you have had a vet or osteopath assess the problem, explain this, and what they concluded;

(iii) state that, in light of the problem, the horse is not of satisfactory quality nor fit for purpose and that the dealer is therefore in breach of the sale of goods legislation;

(iv) state that he is also obliged to refund your money in accordance with the promise which he gave at the time of sale;

(v) state that if he does not refund the purchase price and collect the horse you will have no choice but to issue court proceedings against him, and that if you do that, you will be claiming not only for the purchase price of the horse, but also all costs which you have incurred as a result of the sale (e.g. livery, vet bills, shoeing);

(vi) ask for prompt acknowledgment of the letter, followed by a full response within two weeks;

(vii) include your full contact details so the dealer knows where to contact you.

Send this letter by some guaranteed method, such as Recorded Delivery, to ensure that the dealer receives it. Alternatively, you could deliver it by hand to the premises where you viewed the horse if convenient. If you have an email address for the dealer, send him a copy of the letter via email in addition to the hard copy. Make sure you keep a copy of the letter for your own records and a note of any telephone conversations you have with the dealer.

If the Letter of Claim does not resolve things, your only option is to issue court proceedings. If the amount you are claiming is £5,000 or less, the court is likely to deal with your claim as a "small claim". The procedure for small claims is less formal than for other claims and the parties are generally not represented by lawyers. Comprehensive guidance on how to go about issuing a claim can be found on the Court Service website: http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/infoabout/claims/index.htm. Your local County Court will also be able to provide court forms and guidance leaflets.

Please note that you must pay a fee to issue a court claim. This fee will be between £30 and £120 for claims of £5,000 and under, depending on the precise value. In addition, you will need the dealer's residential or business address, including postcode, to proceed with a court claim.

Lack of passport

The passport legislation states that no person shall sell a horse without a passport, and that the seller must give the horse's passport to the buyer when the horse is sold. The dealer has failed to comply with these requirements, thereby committing an offence for which he could be fined up to £5,000. You may want to report him to your local Trading Standards office, and state your intention to do so in the Letter of Claim.

Legal advice supplied by Lucy Jay of Travers Smith solicitors. (tel: 020 7295 3000) www.traverssmith.com

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