Blog

With all of the Home Nations now under varying National Lockdowns there are a number of new restrictions which will have a direct impact on horse owners, riders, equine practitioners and businesses. 

We understand that our clients are eager to keep business moving forward, keep horses and themselves fit and healthy, and also follow the Government's new lockdown laws that come into affect from the 6th January.

The overriding message during this time is 'stay at home'.  There are a number of permissible reasons for leaving home which include for work, if you cannot reasonably work from home, to care for animals and other people, for medical attention, to shop for essentials and for exercise.

Unlike the November lockdown exercise should now be limited to once per day, however in a difference to the March 2020 lockdown exercise may be taken with 1 other person from a separate household or with members of your household or support bubble.

In general, all of the equestrian policies currently being provided by Shearwater Insurance are operating as normal as long as the insured are acting within Government guidelines.

The following updates are tailored to England and our Equestrian clients.

As Winter is fast upon us, it is inevitable that we will experience periods of sub-zero temperatures.  During these times your home, equestrian and commercial buildings will be at risk of frozen pipes and subsequent damage caused by escaping water.

When the Beast from the East hit in 2018 the country saw temperatures as low as -14C and clocked up £193million of domestic weather related claims.

Here the Shearwater Insurance team, with a little help from our underwriters, offers some help and advice to get you Winter ready.

Shearwater Insurance is delighted to welcome Michael Murphy and Barney Siddle to their stable of ambassadors.

For our equestrian clients in England, we appreciate that there has been a lot of confusing and conflicting information regarding what you can and can't do during Lockdown 2.0.  Here we look to offer some reassurance as to what areas of insurance cover are operating as normal and what areas may be affected.

Home insurance is one of life’s unavoidable costs, but could working with an experienced insurance broker who can handle all of your personal, commercial and equestrian insurance matters be a win win situation? A broker is legally bound to give you the best available policy and pricing, let us take the strain and stress out of searching for the right insurance policy.

Dannie Morgan, of Eastleigh, Hants, may have recently scooped the Superflex Intermediate I Gold title at the NAF Five Star Winter Championship, but his reign of dominion hasn’t ended there: riding High Hoes Estelle, he scored a decisive win in the Shearwater Insurance British Dressage Six-Year-Old Championships at Keysoe College Equestrian Centre, 4 October, too.

Dressage rider and prolific producer Greg Sims, who is based in North Wales’ Ty’n y Groes in the Conwy Valley, took home a decisive victory with Waverley Fellini in the Shearwater Insurance British Dressage Five-Year-Old Championships at Keysoe College Equestrian Centre, 5 October.

It was a busy weekend for Grimsby-based Amy Woodhead at the Shearwater Insurance British Dressage Young Horse Championships, 2–4 October. Woodhead brought six rides forward to the Championship, but none would eclipse Mount St John Diamonds Are Forever. Together, they took top honours in the Four-Year-Old Championship on a final score of 82.4%, awarded by judges Jenny Ward and Jane McGarel-Groves.

In our ever increasingly uncertain world, it is inevitable that we will look to save costs where we can.  Reducing your insurance cover may feel like an obvious place to start, but could you take the hit should the worst happen?  Equestrian insurance specialists, Shearwater Insurance now offer Equine Catastrophe Insurance as a more cost-effective option for horse owners.

Equine Catastrophe Insurance could be a win-win situation.  Veterinary fee cover for accidental external injuries and other covered perils, such as colic surgery.

The insurance market is hardening, bringing pressure from insurers to increase premiums, tighten terms and reduce coverage.

In this blog the Shearwater team reviews current market conditions and provides guidance on how to work with your broker to manage a hard market.