Two men pay compensation over death of racehorse

Two men have been ordered to pay more than £12,000 in compensation over the death of a racehorse in County Tyrone.

According to the BBC, the horse, called Nellie Grew, had to be put down after a road crash in Beragh in August 2008.

The High Court had to rule over the level of compensation as the horse’s market value was disputed, after the two men admitted liability.

The two defendants put the horse’s value at between £2,000 and £5,000, however, the owners put the market value at £35,000.

The owners also said that they had bought the horse for £8,000 and other costs such as insurance payments, training fees and racing fees gave an additional total of £12,000.

The crash happened when the horse, a four-year-old-mare, was in a horse box and was being taken to her first race at Down Royal Racecourse. Unfortunately she had to be put down as a result of the injuries she suffered.

The High Court had heard that the horse was insured for £8,000, but that a stud owner and member of the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association had valued the horse at £35,000 while a Donegal owner had inquired about possibly purchasing it for 35,000 euros.

However, the court did say that the £35,000 valuation was “highly speculative” as it was based on comparative horses which had raced and earned their value through their performances on the track.

It put the market value of Nellie Grew at the time of death at £12,000 and added the £220 cost of the horse's destruction and 4% interest from the date of the writ to the compensation.

Picture: Corinne Cavallo