Equine Law - The Horse-Owner's Liability for Personal Injury

It is very important that the equestrian community to make itself aware of the various situations in which they may be held liable for a personal injury. This is particularly the case for owners and operators of horse stables or other businesses.

Common Law Liability
Common Law liability for personal injury can arise from an allegation of negligence on the part of the horse owner. The person who suffers injury will need to demonstrate that there is a relationship between themself and the horse owner, that it was reasonably foreseeable that as a result of the horse-owner's operations or actions harm might come to the injured party, and the horse owner had failed to take the reasonable precautions.

In cases where a horse owner offers his horses out for riding, there is an inherent risk of injury to the rider and the owner should provide protective equipment, to ensure that the activities are properly supervised, and give relevant instruction on safety and technique.

It is important to note that the precautions taken need only be reasonable, not exhaustive. For example, although protective equipment should be provided when riding, such as hard hats, there is no requirement for the horse-owner to go beyond what is reasonable (e.g. by providing a full suit of body armour). "Reasonableness" is determined with reference to what the ordinary person on the street would consider reasonable.

Statutory Liability
Statutory Liability for personal injury can arise where the injured party argues that the horse has caused them damage as a result of a particular characteristic which is not common in horses - for example where a horse is known to be unusually aggressive and territorial. Statutory liability is imposed by the Animals Act 1971 and is 'strict' meaning that there is no requirement to prove any fault on the part of the horse owner.

Occupier's Liability
The owners and occupiers of any premises have a statutory duty to protect visitors from harm and to warn them of risks which are present on the land. Whilst this is not usually relevant to personal injury caused by horses and is outside the scope of this article, it is something which the owners and operators of stables will need to bear in mind.

Defences to Personal Injury Claims

Contributory Negligence
The law recognises that in many cases the person who suffers an injury is at least partially to blame for the damage caused and that it would be unfair to allow them to recover full compensation from the horse owner. In these types of circumstances the court may decide that the injured party's own negligence contributed to the damage and woould reduce the compensation accordingly.

In some circumstances, the actions of the person who has been injured may be so foolish or irresponsible that the court decides that whilst the horse owner is technically liable for the damage, the injured party is 100% contributory negligent and will receive no compensation.

Voluntary Assumption of Risk

Wherever someone agrees to perform a dangerous activity and running the risk of damage, then the law may prevent them from making a claim for any resulting injury. It should be noted that this will not be true in all cases, and the feasibility of this defence may depend on the experience and skill of the injured party and the degree to which the risk was clear and obvious. For example, in relation to compensation claims for horse riding accidents this defence may apply where an experienced jockey takes part in a dangerous steeplechase but it is unlikely to apply to a novice rider on a pony trek.

Damage Resulting From a Wrongful Act
Wherever someone is injured as a result of circumstances which result from their own illegal actions or civil wrong doings against another person, the law will not allow them to recover compensation or will limit the amount of compensation which they can recover. This defence is specifically available to horse owners under section 5(3) of the Animals Act 1971 which states that a horse owner is not liable for damage which is caused by his horse to trespassers.

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