Guide
Livery yard contracts: the basics to get in writing
Updated
Plenty of livery arrangements still run on a handshake, and most of the horror stories start exactly there. A one-page written agreement protects you and the yard equally, and any good yard will be glad you asked for one.
What a decent livery agreement covers
- The service and the price: livery type, the exact task list included, every chargeable extra, and when and how the price can change.
- Notice period: commonly around four weeks on each side (typical practice, not a legal standard), and what happens to part-paid weeks when you leave.
- Payment terms: due date, late payment consequences, deposit and what it covers.
- Health rules: the yard's worming programme, vaccination requirements (proof of current flu vaccination is commonly required), and isolation rules for new arrivals.
- Insurance and liability: what the yard's insurance covers, what remains your risk, and any requirement for you to hold third-party public liability cover for your horse.
- Practical rules: school and turnout use, visiting instructors, tack storage and security, dogs, children, and who may handle your horse.
The British Horse Society publishes guidance for livery clients and yard owners, including on agreements, and is a sensible starting point if a yard has nothing in writing (bhs.org.uk). If a yard resists putting the basics on paper, treat that as information.
The legal bits people forget
- Every horse legally needs a passport, and it should be kept where the horse is kept, so your yard will need it or a copy (gov.uk horse passport rules).
- Unpaid livery is a real debt, and yards have legal routes to recover it; equally, a yard can't simply change terms overnight if you have an agreement. Paper protects both directions.
- Livery-only yards are generally not licensed in the way riding schools and horse-hire businesses are, so the quality floor is set by the yard, not a regulator; verify anything that matters to you yourself.
- If your horse is on working livery, the hours, rider standard and rest days belong in the agreement, not in conversation.
Before you sign
- Read the agreement at home, not at the yard gate, and query anything vague, especially "reasonable extra charges".
- Photograph your horse's condition and your tack on moving-in day, dated, for everyone's benefit.
- Diarise the notice period. Yard moves go wrong when notice and new-yard start dates don't line up. Looking for the next yard? Tell us what you need and yards with spaces will contact you.
This is general information for horse owners, not legal advice. For a dispute over a livery agreement, unpaid fees or a horse held over a debt, speak to a solicitor or an equine legal specialist.