Horseback riding is inherently dangerous. Anyone who has ever stepped foot in a stirrup knows that accidents happen even on the calmest of animals, and nothing you can do will prevent every injury.
As a horse business owner, your job is to keep your clients as safe as possible, but your job is not to prevent every potential accident. Even more important, your job is not to assume responsibility when accidents happen.
Unfortunately, our society has grown increasingly litigious and it seems like everyone is out to blame someone else. Even if you aren’t negligent, you might find yourself on the bad side of a lawsuit.
The good news is that there are ways to minimize liability in the horse business and to protect yourself, your property, your employees and your clients.
Draft a Liability Waiver
I received an e-mail from a reader this weekend about liability waivers, so a template is included at the bottom of this article. A liability waiver is a document signed by anyone who rides or works with horses at your farm in which the client agrees to hold you harmless for any accidents not caused by gross or willful negligence.
A horse business owner who does not make his or her clients sign a liability waiver is asking for trouble. This will be the only irrefutable proof that visitors to your farm have been made aware of the inherent dangers of equine activities and have agreed not to hold you responsible.
Post Warnings
Another important way to minimize liability for your horse business is to post warning signs informing guests and clients of the danger. These signs are easy to make or purchase, and they should be posted in visible locations throughout the stable, including on the entrance to your property.
These warning signs usually include the language of the statute in your state that protects equine professionals from assuming liability. The language is different depending where you live, and some states even require that these warnings are posted. For example, warning signs are required in Texas and the warning must read:
UNDER TEXAS LAW (CHAPTER 87, CIVIL PRACTICE AND REMEDIES CODE), AN EQUINE PROFESSIONAL IS NOT LIABLE FOR AN INJURY TO OR THE DEATH OF A PARTICIPANT IN EQUINE ACTIVITIES RESULTING FROM THE INHERENT RISKS OF EQUINE ACTIVITIES.
The larger and more visible the sign, the better for a horse business owner.
Provide Safety Equipment
This is an important way for riding instructors to minimize liability. If your horse business provides certain safety equipment, such as riding helmets, you’ll be better able to protect your clients and keep your business safe.
You should also require that all children wear helmets when mounted, and advise clients to wear helmets whenever they are interacting with horses—mounted or otherwise. We forget that our horses’ hooves are just as dangerous when we’re on the ground as when we’re in the saddle.
Set Rules
Devise a list of barn rules and make sure all clients are aware of them. In fact, I recommend you have each client and visitor sign a copy of the barn rules, which proves they have been made aware of them.
Your barn rules should include important safety requirements, such as shutting gates after opening them, not touching horses you don’t know, and signing the aforementioned liability waivers.
Liability Waiver Template
If your horse business doesn’t have a liability waiver, you can use the template below. Just make sure to change details in the template to reflect your horse business, such as the names of your business, employees and other associates. You can add your logo to the top and your contact information.
Equine Liability Waiver (Word 2007 .docx)
Equine Liability Waiver (Word 97-2003 .doc)
You can also adjust the language in the liability waiver to include anything specific about your business, and you can add the language of your state’s equine activity statute at the bottom if you prefer.
You might also like:
- Dangerous Horses in the Horse Business
- Farm Freebies: Barn Rules
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Horse Boarding Business - 5 Barn Safety Tips You
Can’t Survive Without - Horse Business Tools
About the Author: Laura Jane Thompson is the Chief Equestrian Officer of Riding Instructor University and the Feature writer for the horses section at Suite101. She believes that any horse business can succeed provided its owner practices smart strategy.
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Thank you so much for offering this well done liability waiver without requiring a paid membership. I’ll add you to my favorites.
Happy Trails,
Gloria