Horsebox Insurance Considerations

Keeping horses can be an expensive pastime, not purely in maintenance costs such as food and grooming but also through associated costs such as stabling and transportation. Many horse owners choose to buy a horsebox so they can have the independence and convenience of being able to transport their horse whenever and wherever they want.

Horseboxes, whether they are motorised or trailers do however require insurance, both represent a serious financial investment and protecting this investment should be a major consideration. With so many stories out there about horseboxes can become damaged by winds or traffic accidents and also stolen, not obtaining horsebox insurance can be seen as taking a significant financial risk. Ultimately, when budgeting for buying a horsebox, insurance should be included within your plans.

Key Horsebox Insurance Considerations

The first consideration is to speak to your insurer about how you will be using your horsebox. Most companies will draw a distinction between private and business use so this should be clarified. Typically personal usage will be the cheaper option although if you choose this option and have an accident whilst using your vehicle or trailer for business purposes, this may jeopardise your claim.

The costs of horsebox insurance are likely to differ whether you are insuring a motorised horsebox or a trailer. Typically a motorised box will require the legal minimum for any vehicle travelling on the road of third party insurance, although due to the expense of such vehicles, fully comprehensive, or third party fire and theft at the very minimum should be obtained.

It is worth enquiring whether you insurance will cover costs of finding transport or stabling in the event of your horsebox becoming damaged or unusable. Frequently policies will include replacement transport and a few days of stabling, although you should check the details of the policy to ensure this is the case.

Theft is one of the primary reasons to obtain insurance and particular insurers may actually insist that you use anti-theft devices to reduce the chances of your horsebox being stolen.  This could be an immobiliser for motorised horseboxes or wheel clamps and alarms for trailers.

Where you keep your horsebox is also likely to affect the cost, understandably if it is kept in a field miles from civilisation it is at greater risk from thieves than if located in your garage. Subsequently if you do keep your box within the garage, it is worth informing your insurer, you may get a cheaper premium.

Finally it is always worth asking what contents will be covered by your insurance policy. Modern horseboxes can also feature accommodation, satellite television and other electrical equipment adding to the financial cost of a theft. However it is horse riding equipment, particularly expensive items such as saddles which make enquiring about horsebox contents insurance worthwhile.

Hopefully the preceding points have shown some of the elements which should be involved when considering horsebox insurance, ultimately effective insurance is about protecting your investment and ensuring that if it is stolen, damaged or involved in an accident you have adequate protection.