One of the country’s most successful jockeys has revealed the equine industry is at “crisis point” as amateur race meetings nationwide are being axed due to insurance cover being pulled.
Galway man Derek O’Connor who is the country’s top amateur point-to-point rider of all time, with more than 1,2000 winners, said that hundreds of jobs are being put on the line over the insurance cover crisis.
The majority of the hunt clubs in Ireland are involved in running amateur or point-to-point racing across the country. A point-to-point is a form of horse racing over fences for hunting horses and amateur riders.
There are more than 100 of such fixtures held per season and these are organised by local hunt club committees with the Irish Horse Racing Board (IHRB) acting as the administrator.
An overseas subsidiary of Liberty Mutual based in the US is understood to be involved in providing insurance and not Liberty Insurance Ireland which left the commercial market here two years ago.
The overseas insurer has not been renewing cover for hunt clubs, which run the majority of the amateur meetings known as point-to-points, while other insurance underwriters are doubling and tripling prices.
The few insurance policies which can be secured have risen from an average of €4,000 annually to up to triple that amount in some cases according to senior industry regulatory sources.
Cancellations
In Ireland, where the sport is open to licensed professional trainers, many of the horses will appear in these races before they compete in major National Hunt races here and in the UK.
Consequently, the Irish point-to-point is more used as a nursery for future young stars such as Cheltenham Gold Cup winners Best Mate, War of Attrition and Denman and Aintree Grand National winners Monty's Pass, Bindaree and Silver Birch.
Two point-to-point meetings, due to be held by the Wicklow Hunt and Tipperary Foxhounds at Lisronagh, Co Tipperary were cancelled last week due to their insurance policies expiring and not being renewed by the insurers.
Several other hunt clubs across the country are now facing having to cancel planned meetings as when policies come up for renewal they are not being honoured.
Mr O’Connor said: “There is no doubt there are jobs on the line here and not just a few we are talking about huge numbers and indeed the rural way of life.
“The effects of this situation are going to affect so many areas of the equine industry. Without insurance cover, then point-to-point race meetings simply can’t go ahead.
“This impacts not only the industry but rural life as there are so many full-time and part-time jobs involved - not just jockeys but in subsidiary businesses. It’s not as if this crisis has happened overnight it’s been coming down the tracks for several months.”
Immediate problems
It is understood that top hunt club, the Ward Union based in Co Meath, will not be able to hold its point-to-point meeting early next year as their insurance cover is due to expire on December 31st and their renewal is in doubt.
A large number of policies are due to come up for renewal on December 1st with many not expected to be renewed. Hunt clubs understood to be facing immediate insurance problems are in Tipperary, Wicklow, Dublin, Meath and Laois.
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Niall Cronin of the IHRB said the impasse is “definitely affecting” a lot of people working in
the industry and is a “big concern”. He confirmed that several meetings have taken place with Paul Murtagh, the Registrar of Irish National Hunt Steeplechase Committee at the IHRB, Martin O’Donnell IHRB Senior Steward, insurance industry representatives and hunt clubs management along with Government officials.
In a statement the Department of Finance said, “the Government is acutely aware of the concerns felt by some parts of the equestrian and various other sectors regarding the cost and availability of insurance.”
Junior Finance Minister Seán Fleming began a series of three meetings with the CEOs of the eight major insurers based in Ireland on Tuesday. As part of this, he will be asking them to expand their existing coverage here in light of the ongoing reforms to the insurance operating environment.
The Department added: “The Government is acutely aware of the concerns felt by some parts of the equestrian and various other sectors regarding the cost and availability of insurance.
“The Office to Promote Competition in the Insurance Market, which Minister Fleming chairs, is working with the IDA in order to target firms to potentially enter the Irish insurance market and explain the ongoing reforms to the insurance environment, with the aim of attracting new entrants and thereby increasing competition.
“Furthermore, he is planning to examine issues around the provision of cover in niche areas such as equestrian events in the coming weeks with representatives of the insurance and broker industries”.
