Equine Insurance for Dummies?

[Belmont]

Can someone please explain equine insurance to me?

Looking into insurance for CW. He is 13. His use will eventually be for jumpers, but we are flatting our butts off at the moment (cause he is cray). I plan to maybe hit a few small schooling shows at the end of the summer into the fall. We aren’t big jumpers. No courses higher than 3’0" (again, he cray with courses - see previous posts).

I’m just looking into this and it’s so confusing. I just want him covered, because I luffffff him. I just don’t know what to choose and where to go with it.

[Finzean]

Call Jen Oliver at Central VA Insurance. She is a horse owner and gets it! She was wonderful in helping us get insurance on our 13yo and explaining about what we should consider and why … or what not to consider b/c it wasn’t really going to help us out with a 13yo gelding.

[Zuri]

I use Great American and they are wonderful and they have agents all over the country. I have major medical, 15K for surgery, and mortality on my gelding which covers what I paid for him. The agent was really helpful. I needed a vet statement of health when I insured him initially because he was over 25K. I had to insure him for a specific discipline (hunters) as the rates are discipline dependent.

A lot of the web sites have info you can read also. I found the rates did not vary that greatly between companies. What I was looking for was great customer service and rapid response in case of emergency when I called. I sure got it and they were kind, caring, and covered costs very quickly when my horse needed colic surgery.

Most insurance companies have ratings and I would look for one that has an A + rating. Also, some equine insurance companies only underwrite horses over 15K. Good luck! Enjoy!

[GotSpots]

Equine Insurance comes in three forms: mortality, major medical, and loss of use. Mortality pays you the horse’s value (either agreed or actual) if the horse dies under covered circumstances; major medical pays for vet bills after you pay a deductible and up to a certain amount; loss of use pays you a pre-set value (often a percentage or all of a horse’s mortality value) if the horse is no longer able to do the job it was doing before.

The cost to purchase each of these types of insurance (called the premium) varies. Mortality is usually a set percentage of the horse’s value; major medical may be a set-amount as well, and loss of use is generally a higher percentage of hte horse’s value. Loss of use generally requires a vet’s report and is often very expensive.

[gottagrey]

to add you cannot get Major Medical or Loss of Use without mortality. There was some talk that some insurance companies would not insure for major medical for mortality coverage under $15,000 but I’m not sure if that is true. Loss of use can be quite expensive. I have Hallmark with mortality and M/M coverage. They also have a $3,000 colic rider or you can just get surgical but I opted to continue w/ the major medical as the cost difference was not that significant. The colic rider is added to the M/M amount so if you had a $10,000 Major Medical coverage if horse needed colic surgery you could have up to $13,000 in coverage. They’ll use that $3,000 first towards the surgery.

The other thing to remember is that insurance reimburses YOU… They don’t pay the vet or hospital. So if you do have an costly emergency you would need to have available funds for any treatment. I will say having the coverage makes making tough decisions less emotional (at least it was for me) like when your vet asks “is he a surgical candidate”.

Hope this helps

[IronwoodFarm]

The equine products mentioned are PROPERTY coverages. There also is LIABILITY coverage that is availability, either as a stand alone policy or as an endorsement to a mortality policy. I’m always concerned about my horses doing something that damages the property of a third party or injures a third party. I have never happened yet, but the possibility is there and I have assets to protect. So don’t forget the liability coverage.