Sponsored

Source: Acera Insurance

Insurance for all aspects of the equestrian community is a fact of life today and, as much as it is a financial commitment, it is an essential component of the equestrian landscape. Among the few specialist insurance providers offering coverage, Acera Insurance is a leader in the Canadian space.

“For more than 20 years, we have been providing liability insurance coverage to horse owners as an automatic benefit associated with membership in provincial equine associations across the country (HCBC, AEF, OE, NSEF etc.),” says Michael King, the Partner responsible for equine industry risk management and related programming at the organization. “The insurance program available exclusively through membership has insured hundreds of thousands of individuals over the years and continues to be an important part of risk management associated with a lifestyle where horses are present.”

He says that the coverage is very low cost, provides a high limit of $5 million per occurrence and is broad in scope. It will cover the member regardless of the number of horses owned, leased, or borrowed that are being used for personal purposes and it covers the member worldwide. With no restriction to any single location, coverage is in place no matter how many times the horse leaves the property.

“We have a suite of insurance products under the banner of ‘EquiCare’ that includes horse mortality, horse medical and surgical, personal liability, commercial liability, farm, trailer and more. If it involves horses, we have developed a risk management approach through several lifetimes of experience. Our licensed customer service personnel is made up of current and lifelong horsemen and women who understand the industry very well.”

Acera provides coverage for equine industry service providers including professional coaches, trainers, and instructors, and the company firmly believes that they should all be credentialed. For those professionals who are certified, the lowest insurance cost is available, while those who are not pay more. In addition, coaches and trainers who choose to ignore the availability of continuing education to be trained in their profession will pay dearly in legal courts and the court of public opinion since professional qualification is, today, an industry standard in all sports. King believes that the horse industry is overdue to move forward with mandatory licensing and certification given that the benefits are indisputable.

To support educational and research initiatives, Acera is proud of its long-time partnership with Equine Guelph (University of Guelph) and provincial and territorial equine sport organizations (PTSO).

“Among many annual educational projects with the University, we are currently providing direct support for a colic education tool that provides significant value to horse owners. Working with PTSO groups, we provide support for The Horse Portal, which is a globally unique web-based education space delivering a variety of courses.”

The Horse Portal is run by Equine Guelph and it offers a wide variety of online business management/equine science short courses as well as university-accredited continuing education 12-week online courses.

For more information on Acera's equine insurance services, coverage and risk management options, visit Acera Insurance.

Acera Insurance. Same great people, stronger than ever. 

Photo: Shutterstock/AnnaElizabeth Photography