Horse Haulers from Hell "Wellington Equine Express"

[ReSomething]

I disagree that you can judge a hauler by the pretty pictures and bio -obviously either the photos and bio were false or the load was sub contracted to someone completely different.

I do think that there are some very valid points here - such as what exactly do you do when a buyer shows up with a crap trailer - do you rescind the sale? Have you got it in your contract to be able to rescind a sale? Should you have that in your contract?
How about price includes delivery?
And don’t forget there are mistakes made even by reputable haulers that end in tragedy, tires blow out, truckers doze off, adjacent truckers doze off.

[Bicoastal]

COTHers kick butt!

Just want to say thanks for doing all of this research!

[QUOTE=uphill;7782487]
Lori, I checked your Facebook page and read about Gracie. She was picked up by someone different…not Wellington Equine Express or Mr Koch. Your guy was from TX. K J.
…
Here’s what my research shows1) I googled Wellington Equine Express and Dawn and telephone number …came up with Deer Horn Transportation…whose Facebook page is looking for drivers with rigs to join them. There is a post that says x,y and z are no longer affiliated because they misrepresented themselves. MR. KOCH was not named.

Wellington Equine Express sounds impressive . Wellington is a huge horse community with world class jumping and dressage (Wellington Equestrian Festival).
But apparently Mr Koch is registered out of Lantana FL …a residential area duplex propriety owned by someone else. ( maybe he rents?)

This confuses me http://safer.fmcsa.dot.gov/query.asp?searchtype=ANY&query_type=queryCarrierSnapshot&query_param=USDOT&query_string=2526833. Looks like out of service??? You must be able to get copy of inspection??

When I googled the number and Dawn, I came up with Deer Horn Transport and their Facebook page is soliciting rigs to join them. The latest post disclaims several people ( others…not Mr Koch) for misrepresenting themselves!!! So there are more![/QUOTE]

[Pocket_Pony]

This makes me so thankful that I decided to go pick up my pony myself. I had tried uShip because a friend had a horse hauled to her house a couple weeks earlier and the same guy bid on my job. I was not happy with the slow communication once my bid was accepted, but never shipped a horse before so didn’t know the logistics that went into it. When they told me the details of where they were coming from, how many horses they’d be bringing, that they’d overnight with the pony after dropping other horses off, it just didn’t sit right with me. After a conversation about VS being in Tx (and that’s where the other horses were coming from) and highly contagious, I decided to go get pony myself.

After reading this, I’m so glad I did. I may have dodged a bullet. WEE wasn’t the bidder, but it wasn’t a big company, either.

This was the only instance where I have (would have) had a horse shipped. I certainly would have appreciated finding this thread and having a heads-up notification before I made any arrangements!

Hope the colt is safe and sound now.

[Kwill]

This really is an important topic, because when do you say, “I won’t put this horse I sold on this trailer”?

I am not blaming the victim here, but the circumstances being what they were – a young horse, buyer going out of the country and being in a hurry, trailer clearly very, very unsuitable – in this case, maybe telling the buyer that you would keep the horse until he/she got back from overseas and then ship would have been better? What does it say about the buyer that they were desperate enough to put their new purchase on this terrible trailer, just because of a time constraint?

Frankly, I don’t know how you would warn against this kind of thing when it was a bait and switch situation which could happen to anyone with small, independent shippers and this aggregate deal.

[Gestalt]

When I was looking for transport on a horse I just got the two shippers I wanted to deal with couldn’t get the horse for over a week. The seller found a shipper that could pick up the next day. They aren’t a well known company. My horse got carted all over the PNW. She was stuck squished into a slant load with no water or food for over 18 hours. The drivers stopped over night to sleep and the horses had to stand in the trailer while the drivers slept. It really pissed me off that they didn’t plan the stop at a location where the horses could be unloaded and given water.

My lesson learned was to either pay for the horse to stay with the seller or at a reputable barn in that area until a good shipper can pick them up.

[Lix_Tetrax]

I find it funny that some posters are saying “who cares if the horse wasn’t yours anymore, just because money exchanged hands doesn’t mean you can’t do anything!”. When some of these posters have also said on other threads “if the money exchanged hands then the horse is no longer yours. If you want control you shouldn’t have sold him/her, listen to the new owner”.

Only on COTH!

[uphill]

[QUOTE=Bicoastal;7782780]
Just want to say thanks for doing all of this research![/QUOTE]

Google is awesome…

[Gayle_in_Oregon]

[QUOTE=uphill;7782487]
Lori, I checked your Facebook page and read about Gracie. She was picked up by someone different…not Wellington Equine Express or Mr Koch. Your guy was from TX. K J.
So you are defending someone you have no clue about… though he may be an independent also under some affiliation with Deer Horn…who appears to be trying to become a shipper broker.

Here’s what my research shows1) I googled Wellington Equine Express and Dawn and telephone number …came up with Deer Horn Transportation…whose Facebook page is looking for drivers with rigs to join them. There is a post that says x,y and z are no longer affiliated because they misrepresented themselves. MR. KOCH was not named.

Wellington Equine Express sounds impressive . Wellington is a huge horse community with world class jumping and dressage (Wellington Equestrian Festival).
But apparently Mr Koch is registered out of Lantana FL …a residential area duplex propriety owned by someone else. ( maybe he rents?)

This confuses me http://safer.fmcsa.dot.gov/query.asp?searchtype=ANY&query_type=queryCarrierSnapshot&query_param=USDOT&query_string=2526833. Looks like out of service??? You must be able to get copy of inspection??

When I googled the number and Dawn, I came up with Deer Horn Transport and their Facebook page is soliciting rigs to join them. The latest post disclaims several people ( others…not Mr Koch) for misrepresenting themselves!!! So there are more!
The person you contract with may just broker your shipment to an unknown and/or misrepresented entity.

You really need to be careful and specifically ask if the rig is company owned and drivers employed by said company and not contracted!!!

OP , sorry you had to experience the heart wrench of the experience and you are right to “out” them. However, you need to be careful HOW you say what and only say provable things so you can’t be sued for libel.[/QUOTE]

Thank you. I appreciate the advice and clear, critical thinking. I have only stated things that I am a personal witness to expecting I could receive backlash from this. I also have pictures and phone records not to mention that the ‘legal health and shipping documents’ named “Deer Horn” as the shipper.

Anyone can sue anyone for anything and I have been targeted before by bullies and so far have prevailed. I hate to fight but hate to see really bad things happen and look the other way. We do have freedom of speech still right? My guess is such a “business” could more easily and cheaply change their name. I also had two non family members both farmers witness who were as upset as I was. That night was the worst one of my life. And yes, of course I have second guessed myself A LOT!!!

The answer is to not get into such a stressful situation in the first place. I never even imagined something this bad happening so I could not prepare in advance. Regular humans who are not Navy Seal types, don’t make the best decisions in times of high stress. Con artists know this.

[Gayle_in_Oregon]

7,014 Views…that is cool!!!

[Gayle_in_Oregon]

[QUOTE=Laurierace;7781065]
Just another fly by night on uship. Put it in your sales contract that you won’t ship on any uship carriers and you will solve 99% of your shipping issues. These type of outfits only survive when people are trying to save mega bucks. You get what you pay for.[/QUOTE]

But what will happen when Uship changes it name and directs it internet searches to “Weship”. I think its more complicated than that. And as I stated elsewhere, this was a ‘going rate’ price, not a ‘save mega bucks’.

[GoshenNY]

If I may make a suggestion. We have formed a group on Facebook, “The commercial horse haulers”. I have personally vetted all the haulers for their credentials, I have even removed some for conduct unbecoming. Most of our members are independent tractor trailer rigs.
Feel free to join,
Regards
J
https://www.facebook.com/groups/700804619938705/

[GoshenNY]

The original customer may wish to conduct equine express. Just to give them the heads up that a fly by night is running with a similar name.
Another word to the wise, if the proper signage in not on the door of the towing vehicle, INCLUDING DOT,they are not legal to haul.
Regards,
J

[Kwill]

[QUOTE=GoshenNY;7786279]

Another word to the wise, if the proper signage in not on the door of the towing vehicle, INCLUDING DOT,they are not legal to haul.
Regards,
J[/QUOTE]

That is good information to have!!

[Gayle_in_Oregon]

[QUOTE=GoshenNY;7786279]
The original customer may wish to conduct equine express. Just to give them the heads up that a fly by night is running with a similar name.
Another word to the wise, if the proper signage in not on the door of the towing vehicle, INCLUDING DOT,they are not legal to haul.
Regards,
J[/QUOTE]

Did it several days ago. They have more than one copy cat. They have sought legal advice in the past but I don’t know if they have yet on this one. It depends partly on which state you register your business in.

[Shahrazade]

Thanks for this thread, they had quoted me as well. Had already written them off due to the trailer type used for such a long haul (6 horse slant for 1000 mile trip) but they have pics online now of a beautiful, big air ride rig - wonder if they even actually own that? But the one I talked to (KJ same as the concerned customer elsewhere in the thread) was honest about what the rig would be, so there is that. KJ gets a thumbs up from me for not trying to convince me that the air ride I wanted from the photos would be available for my horses.

[Gayle_in_Oregon]

[QUOTE=Shahrazade;7787497]
Thanks for this thread, they had quoted me as well. Had already written them off due to the trailer type used for such a long haul (6 horse slant for 1000 mile trip) but they have pics online now of a beautiful, big air ride rig - wonder if they even actually own that? But the one I talked to (KJ same as the concerned customer elsewhere in the thread) was honest about what the rig would be, so there is that. KJ gets a thumbs up from me for not trying to convince me that the air ride I wanted from the photos would be available for my horses.[/QUOTE]

KJ with Dawn’s help is the one who pulled the bait and switch on my customer. He knows about this thread now.

[Kwill]

Getting a thumbs up for not lying doesn’t seem like a very solid endorsement.

[goneriding24]

Okay, long thread and maybe I missed this part. I’m a former big rig driver and had to deal with HOS. If these guys have to have DOT numbers, they hauled for 29 hours for a 10 hour haul?? Did they take the required 10 hour break?? I’m trying to figure out how a 10 hour haul could take so long unless the 10 hour haul is basically as-the-crow-flies and without a stop…which isn’t legal either. There had to be a 30 minute break in there, that just started. So, if there were a 10 hour break, the colt is standing in a trailer for the 10 hours while the driver is in the sleeper? What do they do with horses for that amount of time? If a 10 hour haul without stopping, what kind of fuel are they running? Was this a tractor-trailer rig? Something doesn’t add up.

As for selling the colt and new owner is in a rush to get him to new home, sounds like a big cluster all the way around.

[mvp]

[QUOTE=Gayle in Oregon;7775652]
WHEN I TOLD THEM THEY COULD NOT HAUL THE COLT, THEY CALLED OWNER AND TOLD HIM. I GOT OVER RULED DUE TO A TIME CRUNCH. I EVEN SENT HIM CELL PICTURES OF THE RIG. I KEEP SAYING THIS SO PLEASE, THE PURPOSE HERE IS TO EXPOSE A BAD HAULER OR HAULERS IF YOU KNOW OF ONES THAT SHOULD BE AVOIDED. NOT MONDAY MORNING ARM CHAIR QUARTERBACK ME. AND IF I ARRANGE THE HAULER IT MAKES ME RESPONSIBLE FOR THE RESULT. THAT IS ALSO NOT ACCEPTABLE. BUT, I WILL DEMAND DETAILS ON THE HAULER AND RESUME PLUS PHOTOS OF THE RIG IN THE FUTURE. I HAVE BEEN SHIPPING HORSES ACROSS COUNTRY AND CANADA FOR 30 YEARS AND NEVER EVEN IMAGINED ANYTHING LIKE THIS EXISTED IN THE INDUSTRY BUT CLEARLY IT DOES.[/QUOTE]

Well now that we have been yelled at and your credentials established as one who “know better”-- didn’t it occur to you that this buyer/HO was being naive? After all, he decided to find a long-distance hauler via U-ship or similar instead of going with one of the established haulers, No red flag there, or where you not worried about his doing due diligence because it was his horse at that point?

Look, I get it that it’s not your horse. I get that your intention is to write a helpful PSA. But you come across as letting the rest of us know that were are all sitting ducks since someone as experienced as you had no possible sign that this would happen. If I read the details right (or read between the lines when you called the buyer/HO naive), yeah, you did have a sign.

I, too, have been doing this awhile and I have high standards for care. IME, now that I’m old, if you see people cutting corners…. chances are that they really are doing that and will continue to do so if they don’t know better or can’t afford better. But you can usually see the signs of standards that are lower than your own.

[Kwill]

Flamesuit on, but this is all great until the client/new owner in a similar situation hires this person, trailer pulls up, and former owner holding the horse can do nothing about it, as you clearly explained here.

So it’s great to warn all of us, but would not do a thing to stop a naive, in a hurry person from pulling the exact same thing.