On-Site Trainers – What the Property Owner Needs to Know
At Equine Legal Solutions, we frequently receive calls from horse property owners asking what they should do if they have a trainer who wants to give lessons or train horses at their facility. Here is what we tell those callers.
Insurance
Every trainer, no matter how small their business is, should have
liability insurance. That liability insurance should name the facility and its owners as additional insureds. Contrary to popular opinion, adding additional insureds to your policy is not typically costly. Horse training is a low margin business, and insurance can be expensive, so it is common enough for trainers to say that they have insurance when in fact they do not. Therefore, you should require the trainer to provide you with proof of coverage showing the amount of insurance and a current coverage period, and showing you listed as an additional insured. We recommend that our trainer clients have coverage of at least $1M per occurrence and $3M in the aggregate. In light of those recommendations, consider whether the trainer that will be coming to your facility is adequately insured.
Liability Releases
Each person who comes onto your premises should sign your
liability release. If the trainer has their own liability release, chances are excellent that it will provide absolutely no protection for you. Most trainers’ releases do not name the facility and its owners among the parties being released. Even if the release does happen to name the proper parties, it may not be well drafted enough to be enforceable. Furthermore, the trainer may not have gotten around to having each client sign the release, or they may not be able to find the signed releases when you need them. The only way to make sure that you are adequately covered by a liability release is to use your own release and keep your own records.
Written Agreements
For trainers who will be regularly using your facilities, we highly recommend having a written agreement (separate from your regular boarding agreement) that spells out, in detail, the terms of your relationship. For example, will the trainer have priority over other users for arena time? What if you have more than one trainer and they both want to use the facilities at the same time? Will the trainer compensate you for the use of your facilities, and if so, how will that compensation be calculated? Under what circumstances can you terminate the agreement, and what notice will be required? Equine Legal Solutions offers equine facility lease agreement forms as well as an equine facility use agreement form.
Impact on Your Facility
Trainers tend to use the facilities more often and for longer periods of time than a typical boarder, so consider whether your facility can comfortably handle the increased usage, and consider its impact upon your existing boarders. You should have a written, posted policy describing how competing uses of the facilities will be resolved – for example, what will happen if the trainer is giving a lesson in the arena and someone else wants to ride?
Business Conduct and Your Reputation
This trainer will be doing business out of your facility. What do you know about them and how they conduct their business? Nothing will drive away your boarders more quickly than a trainer who conducts their business in a manner that is inconsiderate or unethical. A horse facility’s reputation tends to be very closely tied to the reputations of the trainers who work out of the facility. If the trainer uses unsafe training methods, it could also create liability for you.
Insurance
Every trainer, no matter how small their business is, should have
liability insurance. That liability insurance should name the facility and its owners as additional insureds. Contrary to popular opinion, adding additional insureds to your policy is not typically costly. Horse training is a low margin business, and insurance can be expensive, so it is common enough for trainers to say that they have insurance when in fact they do not. Therefore, you should require the trainer to provide you with proof of coverage showing the amount of insurance and a current coverage period, and showing you listed as an additional insured. We recommend that our trainer clients have coverage of at least $1M per occurrence and $3M in the aggregate. In light of those recommendations, consider whether the trainer that will be coming to your facility is adequately insured.
Liability Releases
Each person who comes onto your premises should sign your
liability release. If the trainer has their own liability release, chances are excellent that it will provide absolutely no protection for you. Most trainers’ releases do not name the facility and its owners among the parties being released. Even if the release does happen to name the proper parties, it may not be well drafted enough to be enforceable. Furthermore, the trainer may not have gotten around to having each client sign the release, or they may not be able to find the signed releases when you need them. The only way to make sure that you are adequately covered by a liability release is to use your own release and keep your own records.
Written Agreements
For trainers who will be regularly using your facilities, we highly recommend having a written agreement (separate from your regular boarding agreement) that spells out, in detail, the terms of your relationship. For example, will the trainer have priority over other users for arena time? What if you have more than one trainer and they both want to use the facilities at the same time? Will the trainer compensate you for the use of your facilities, and if so, how will that compensation be calculated? Under what circumstances can you terminate the agreement, and what notice will be required? Equine Legal Solutions offers equine facility lease agreement forms as well as an equine facility use agreement form.
Impact on Your Facility
Trainers tend to use the facilities more often and for longer periods of time than a typical boarder, so consider whether your facility can comfortably handle the increased usage, and consider its impact upon your existing boarders. You should have a written, posted policy describing how competing uses of the facilities will be resolved – for example, what will happen if the trainer is giving a lesson in the arena and someone else wants to ride?
Business Conduct and Your Reputation
This trainer will be doing business out of your facility. What do you know about them and how they conduct their business? Nothing will drive away your boarders more quickly than a trainer who conducts their business in a manner that is inconsiderate or unethical. A horse facility’s reputation tends to be very closely tied to the reputations of the trainers who work out of the facility. If the trainer uses unsafe training methods, it could also create liability for you.