I was futzing around on the internet late last night and saw the article below at BBC news and was SHOCKED.
“Selleck wins lame-horse dispute
Selleck had bought the horse for his daughter to ride
Actor Tom Selleck has been awarded more than $187,000 (£114,000) after a California jury found he was duped into buying a lame horse.
The Magnum PI star accused seller Dolores Cuenca of trying to pass off a show horse with a medical condition as fit to ride in competitions.
The defence had argued the actor did not check the vet records of 10-year-old animal named Zorro.
The jury’s award covers the cost of the horse and additional boarding costs.
The $120,000 (£73,000) horse had been intended for Selleck’s 20-year-old daughter, Hannah, to ride in amateur competitions.
A second trial will be held next week to determine how much Selleck should be paid in damages.
“We are pleased with the jury’s verdict and we look forward to the proceedings on Tuesday,” said Selleck’s lawyer, George Knopfler.
He declined to say how much the actor was seeking in punitive damages.”
So what do you think? Personally I think that it is NUTS he is buying his 20 year old daughter a horse. I mean, shouldn’t she be growing up at some point? I thought Mary M was crazy for paying board on her daughters horse until I found out that she rides and enjoys Axe while her daughter is at school. So that is just my prejudice. And it sounds like from the article that the buyer didn’t get the old vet records or get the horse vetted. I mean, while I think it is wrong the woman tried to sell them a horse with some horrible lameness, I also think that it is the buyers job to get as much information as possible when they buy a horse.
I just think this sets up a scary precedent for anyone that sells horses. What happens if the horse you sell had a rearing problem that you fixed before you sold it and yet the horse starts to rear again at its new home? Is that your fault? Can you be found to be at fault and have to repay the money to the buyer? This just seems like a slippery slope to be sliding on.
Anyone out there have more information on this? Is the seller, Dolores Cuenca, known for being crooked? I just cannot believe that anyone would pay $120,000 on a horse and not have gone over it with a fine tooth comb. I also cannot imagine paying that much for a horse ever. Or having my parents buy me a horse! I guess I just live a deprived life…but at least I have common sense right?
“At your own risk” seems to no longer apply anywhere. There is a more recent case being worked on, where the wife of a lawyer was injured at a trail riding barn, and now they’re trying to sue, despite equine liability laws and the waiver she (supposedly?) signed.
It’s very disturbing and worrisome.
It’s actually something I think about often. Horses pull a lot of sh-t in training. Some may display their resistence as a rear, others buck, and others to spin around, etc. It’s normal in training because you have to push them a little to move their education forward and some really don’t like that. If they are ridden well, it usually all goes away. And if they are continued to be ridden well, it usually stays away. However, do we really know that they will not revert back to that behavior if they are ridden poorly? Even 10 years later? I don’t know.
I can’t imagine spending that for a horse either. How foolish do you have to be to not have a horse vetted from top to bottom before a purchase. Hell we just got a horse basically for free and we had him vetted and x-rayed just to know what we would be dealing with in the future. And he was ridden beforehand too. If you’re willing to spend that much money on a horse, maybe you should know something about horses and not just buy one as a gift so you can win at your level of competition. I have no sympathy for anyone who doesn’t do their homework before purchasing any horse.
Actually, it was 114,000 British Pounds, or $187,000 American Dollars.
And I would have to have ALL the facts in the case before I could make any comment on it, because there are many, many legal parameters. I can see both sides of the story, because I have been in the horse business all my adult life. Sellers DO have responsibilites, but as was mentioned–where do they begin and end? Most horse buyers are ill-prepared to buy their first horse, no matter what the price range. Most people who become enamoured of horses have no basis on which to rely in picking an “expert”. How many of us started “taking lessons at the neighbor’s house”? We are lucky to have survived those “lessons”, but not everyone is that lucky. In the U.S., there is no mandatory licensing or certification, so how do you know who is qualified, much less who is ethical?
I would need much more information than an AP news release, or a British Magazine article (Horse and Hound) to come to an informed conclusion, and I am a professional who buys and sells horses on behalf of my clients, and who also trains, teaches lessons, clinics, and judges schooling shows in the southeast, so I have a bit of experience in these things….still, I would not want to hazard a guess as to whether this decision was right or wrong. JMHO
But, I am glad that you posted the question!!