A rider who faced the possibility of losing everything after a former friend “lied repeatedly” in legal action against her is sharing her story in hope of helping others.
Sara Marsden was deemed the liable person after a horse she was trying to load, to help its loaner out, kicked Samantha Catterall and broke her arm in September 2021. Samantha, also known as Samantha Ward, tried to claim nearly £179,000 in December 2024, over three years after the incident. This included compensation for “future losses”, including over £122,000 for horse care – and over £2,000 for “hair care”. The claim was dropped this summer.
“At the end of it all, I did it all with truth and she got nowhere with all those lies,” Sara told H&H. “I never thought truth would actually prevail, but it did. A big thank you to [lawyer] Jacqui Dark, because I could have lost everything.”
Samantha initially brought the claim against Pepper’s owner. But the mare was on loan to a rider, whom Sara offered to help when she was struggling to load the horse. Pepper was taken to Sara’s yard and deemed by law to be in Sara’s control when the incident happened.
Samantha claimed that she went to Sara’s yard to drop off dog food, and found Pepper at the foot of the ramp, Sara in the trailer. Her claim states that Samantha “had no intention or wish to engage with Pepper”, and that she was about 20 feet away when the mare moved back, reared, then kicked her.
Sara’s case is that she asked her long-term friend Samantha, an experienced rider and “especially experienced in loading difficult horses” to help load Pepper, explaining that the mare had been rearing and kicking. She said Samantha agreed to help – then repeatedly hit Pepper with a whip, the mare kicking out each time, until finally a kick made contact. Sara said a friend of hers witnessed what happened.
Solicitor’s letter
Sara heard nothing about legal proceedings until she was sent a solicitor’s letter. But when she contacted her insurers, she was told she was not covered. She contacted Jacqui Dark, of Equine Law UK, and they set about finding evidence, such as images on social media of Samantha hunting by December 2021. She had claimed that by February 2022, she was “still unable to lift pans or peel vegetables”. Samantha also claimed for costs such as gardening, although, Sara said, she had moved to a house without a garden.
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“We found pictures of her sitting on a five-bar gate, drinking a glass of wine, taking selfies, jumping walls out hunting,” Sara said, adding that she also spoke to local yard owners and confirmed that much of the care Samantha was claiming for had not been carried out.
The evidence was submitted to Samantha’s solicitor and the claim dropped soon afterwards, this summer.
Ms Dark told H&H the case shows “there is help out there”.
“Health and safety has gone slightly mad and we worry that we can’t do this or that but accidents happen, it doesn’t mean someone’s responsible,” she said. “[Samantha] took it on herself to go too close to this pony and hit it, and got kicked, and that was out of my client’s control. Our industry is in a difficult place and it will make it worse if really good horse people won’t help new people because they’re scared.”
Ms Dark added that social media and the prevalence of phones that can take photos and videos, and store text history, can provide evidence against anyone considering making a fraudulent claim.
Sara warned others with horses to check their insurance will cover them if there is any attempt at legal action. She had checked hers and is pursuing the matter.
“People might think it won’t happen to them but without insurance, you could end up on your knees,” she said. “Samantha could have pulled out of this, if our friendship was worth it – but money was obviously worth more.”
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Eleanor is an experienced journalist who spent over eight years working for local and national newspapers before joining H&H as news editor in March 2016. Passionate about equine welfare and exposing the truth, Eleanor has reported on all aspects of the industry, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage rules to mules. Her sport of choice is showjumping, in which she competes her own horses, and she also enjoys reporting at local jumping shows through to international championships.
