yard, stable & paddock


Are you sufficiently insured in the event of fire damage?


The importance of sufficient building insurance is obvious to most, but a recent fire disaster on a Scottish rural estate has brought this into sharp focus.


A fire ripped through a remote estate cottage completely destroying the internal fabric of the property with only the structural walls left intact. On notifying the insurers, the loss adjuster carried out a site visit and advised the estate that in their view the property was underinsured. CKD Galbraith’s building surveying team was appointed to carry out a retrospective assessment on the estate’s behalf to establish what the building should have been insured for, prior to the fire. The retrospective assessment of the property, undertaken by James Taylor of CKD Galbraith, confirmed the property was underinsured by more than 20%. As a result the ‘average’ clause in the insurance policy was applied and the estate consequently received a settlement offer significantly less than the cost of reinstating the cottage. The ‘average’ clause comes into force when it can be demonstrated that the insured sum is 20% or more below the actual reinstatement cost; although care should be taken to review your policy as some insurers will have different thresholds. If the averaging


James Taylor, Associate at CKD Galbraith


clause is applied, the claim will be reduced by the same proportion of underinsurance. In a simple example of a property that should be insured for £100,000 but is actually only insured for £80,000, the claimant can only expect to receive £64,000 settlement in the event of a £100,000 claim. It is therefore vital that adequate and correct insurance valuations are in place to safeguard against the risk of fire damage and asset loss.


In the aftermath of the fire, a phased assessment of all properties on the estate was carried out and declared value adjustments were made where necessary. James Taylor, Associate at CKD Galbraith, said: “Building insurance is a responsibility every owner must be mindful of. Whilst the chances of a significant fire occurring are


hopefully relatively low, due to improvements in construction and building legislation, this case in particular demonstrates the importance of having appropriate insurance cover to minimise loss as a result of fire damage, or indeed any other loss. “The underinsurance was extremely costly to the estate. Had the correct insurance cover been in place at the outset, the cost of the reinstatement cost assessments would have paid for themselves many times over.” Following a settlement agreement of around 75% of the insured sum, CKD Galbraith are working with the estate to assess viable options going forward. These include the possibility of rebuilding the cottage on a new site within the estate due to the remoteness of the original location, which posed a number of construction and cost difficulties.


Hoof


abscesses at unprecedented levels


Farriers and vets are reporting unprecedented numbers of equine hoof abscesses this year, so choosing the right bedding for your horse’s stable has never been more important. Wiltshire based Farrier Andrew Dean DipWCF explains; “The surface your horse is standing on in the stable is incredibly important in relation to hoof health as standing on soiled, ammonia soaked bedding can increase the risk of bacterial or fungal infections such as thrush or pus in the foot. “Ensuring the bedding in your stable is clean, dry and hygienic can help prevent the hoof from becoming soft and more susceptible to infection or puncture.” With horse health in mind, Nedz chopped straw bedding has been developed to provide all the comfort and benefits of a traditional straw bed, combined with some modern additions to ensure optimum hoof health and general wellbeing – not to mention exceptional absorbency. As well as being sterilised and dust extracted, Nedz Original and Nedz Pro are treated with Natural Nedz, which contains an organic blend of manuka honey, aloe vera, cade oil and silver to provide anti-bacterial, antiseptic, anti-fungal, and anti-parasitic properties. Visit www.nedz.co.uk


New online shop for seed specialist Nickerson


Nickerson Direct is a new on line shop launched by specialist seed company Nickerson, giving quick and easy access to a comprehensive range of the company’s seed varieties for forage grasses, root and fodder crops, amenity, environmental and soil improvement mixtures.


Products sold via Nickerson Direct are available in small pack sizes, ideally suited to growers with up to 30 hectares or as a top-up to existing orders. “The site is aimed at a wide range of growers but especially at smallholders, farmers who need field margin products and equestrian centres, as well as greenkeepers and groundsmen,” says Nickerson sales director Alastair Moore. “It’s also ideal for top up orders of seeds for growers needing extra quantities of specific varieties or mixtures.” Nickerson Direct has been designed to complement the company’s technical seed specialist team who will provide


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any support required for those buying from the web site. “More people want to find out about products and buy off web site stores using modern technology like tablets and smart phones,” he adds. “So it’s important that we make our products available through this additional route. “But it’s equally important, that as an established and reputable seed business, we offer our technical expertise so growers make the right choices and get the most out of their purchases. Along with the support of technical advisers, Nickerson Direct also links with the main Nickerson web site where we provide product sheets and grower’s guides for each crop.” Being part of Group Limagrain, the largest seed company in the EU and with significant investment in research and development, gives Nickerson Direct unique access to proven and reliable products. “Through Nickerson we can pass on these advantages and supply quality


seed directly from breeder to farmer.” Nickerson Direct brings on line shopping advantages to many growers who might run their units on a part time basis and order product outside normal working hours. Orders can be placed 24/7 and the web site shop has a frequently


asked questions section and a customer services telephone number to help with any questions surrounding their order.


Growers can access the new Nickerson Direct shop at www.nickersondirect.co.uk Delivery to UK addresses is free of charge.


This grazing paddock was sown with the Equipaddock seed mix


www.theequinesite.co.uk


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