To buy (a trailer) or not to buy...

[CocoLoco1234]

Appreciate your guidance on this head / heart quandary.
Daughter is 8, has been riding for a few years and loans a pony on weekends. We are on a fab yard with school and hacking and members of PC. Many of the PC rallies are at other yards and due to lack of transport we don't go. However, did a couple of shows last year and really enjoyed it so would like to get out more. I'm looking at buying a trailer but a) they aren't cheap and b) would need to get tow bar added to car. I can afford the trailer but it's a question of whether this is sensible or not. We could hire a box that would defo be cheaper, but its the faff of arranging, collecting and then what starts as a cheap PC rally turning into £100+ each time. And, this is for a piny we loan 1 day a week (although have more in holidays)

Eventually, once she outgrown current loan, I'd love a mother daughter share so I know the box would be useful for that, but its a few years away. Am I rushing into buying a box now? Or, do I accept that it provides us freedom to attend more without having to think about planning hiring etc. I think getting her out more will do wonders for her confidence and help her continue to develop her riding which I think is something she'll do for life (or until boys come along!)
What would you do??

Maybe have a look at long term trailer hire rather than hiring ad hoc for day? Around us that's £150 pcm. Maybe just hire it over spring/summer say 6 months. Give it back in winter when doing less anyway. You'll need to insure it circa £10 per month but no maintenance costs.
I've got an older ifor Williams. Love it and I use it a lot BUT I've just spent £1000 servicing it because brake cables, damper, panel had all gone. Also don't skimp the insurance, trailers may as well be made of cardboard and crumple alarmingly easily.

I bought a single trailer when dd started doing PC stuff - at first we were hiring transport but it turned a £10 PC rally into close to a £100 event and we also had to book way in advance so had no spontaneity. It cost me about £100 to get it serviced each year and £10 a month to insure it.

When she left home I sold it for slightly more than I’d bought it for so the transport costs for the three years I had it were essentially negligible. If your car is capable of towing and you have the spare cash upfront it’s the most cost effective way to get your dd and the pony out and about. It also means you can do things on a whim - eg when her old horse decided a particular type of filler was terrifying we could hire an arena after school and pop down for a quick desensitisation session which we probably wouldn’t have done if we’d had to book and pay for transport.

Thank you, this is really helpful. I have storage, the car to tow and some money saved so really I have it all ready to go it's just the outlay when we don't own the pony. But, I think I need to see past that because we will own one day and at least we'll be ready.

Thank you, I will look at this option too.

Renting a trailer could be a good solution because they do afford more freedom.
Check carefully your towing capacity though, some cars which claim to be able to tow really shouldn't be towing anything.
Also make sure you know how to travel eg single/heaviest horse should always go on driver's side with the passenger side empty/lighter horse.

Where we live, trailers hold their value very well. I bought my trailer (a very bog-standard, older Ifor 505) a few years ago but will probably get back pretty much what I paid for it when I sell this year. From that point of view, if you have a towing car that can safely pull the trailer and someone that can drive then it's not a massive gamble to get a trailer, knowing that you'll recoup the money if you decide that you don't want it anymore.

The only consideration is whether you feel comfortable hitching, driving and maneuvering a trailer. It does take a bit of getting used to but then I'm not the most confidant driver!

Lots of things to consider
Upkeep of the trailer
Insurance
Storage
And the amount of times you use it.

Tbh until I used it all the time and had space to keep on I'd hire. We have a local business who hires them for £90 a day so this is what we do

I've owned several trailers and always sold them for at least what I've paid for them originally if not more ! Trailers hold their value really well even after 10 years. Buy one with a metal floor.
The bigger dilemma for me is affording to run a vehicle large/powerful enough to tow it with. At times I have run 2 cars, a smaller, fuel efficient pop pop for general use and a gas guzzling 4x4 just to tow with. The extra tax and insurance costs for keeping 2 vehicles on the road were cheaper than the additional fuel costs of using a 4x4 for every day use.

I'd go for a trailer - an Ifor williams maybe as they hold their value really well and are as solid as possible. I paid £90 to a local company for 3 hours training as well so I knew how to hitch up, reverse and general useful info. We kept in on the yard with the pony and it was also extremely useful extra storage space when not in use.

Having a trailer esp in the summer will be transformational - you can take a friend's pony and go off to the beach/hacking/pleasure rides. Or go in for competitions and more pony club rallies or venue hires to practice jumping or XC. Might need the pony more than one day a week though!

This is going to sound stupid but I've honestly never heard of somebody who doesn't actually have their own pony, thinking of buying a trailer, so my first thought was a bit....huh? But actually some very very good points raised here, they hold their value VERY well, and if you think you might end up buying a pony anyway then it could very well be a sensible idea for you. The option of longer term hire for a season might be a good idea to see if you get the use and value out of it.

Certainly with our pony and previous pony, I wouldn't have been without transport. It is a huge part of what DD wants to do, ride out in local country parks, messing around with ponies at friend's yards, riding club, competitions including multi-day stay away competitions, even pony holidays. It really does give you wings. There is very little I need to say no to, if DD asks 'can I take pony to xyz'.

Only other caution is check with the owner what they are happy for you to take the pony to. It can be tricky sometimes with loans, some owners are happy for loaners to do literally anything, others want to accompany if off yard or somewhere new, and some don't want the loaner taking the pony off yard at all. I had a friend come across this in the summer...had taken the loan horse to a show and done very well, the owner had been really supportive of the trip, and was there on the day to load and help etc. but then afterwards said she thought it was all too much for the horse and she didn't want it going off the yard again. That family were also considering getting their own transport as they had expected this to be the first of many trips! So I'd have an open conversation about it with the owner first.

Ha, I know and the fact I don't own her is really the reason I'm wondering if the outright cost is worth it. But, I think we have a year to 18 months max left with this little pony then we will need something bigger and at that time I'd like to look for a mother daughter share and would own. Having our own trailer gives us the option to get out to more things with out having to rely on others and the owner is happy for us to do this.

All the advice on here had been so helpful! Thank you all for taking the time to reply. I think you've helped me decide to go for it! If it doesn't work out, we can sell. Thanks all!

I know someone who only has a part loan pony but does have a trailer. It enables them to go out competing, to pony club rallies and all kinds things. They do PC teams and National Schools competitions.

Not many owners are happy for part loaners/sharers to take their pony out unaccompanied though so talk to the owner first.

Trailers are inexpensive to buy and run, when I did the maths it was much better than hiring. Don't buy one that is too new but do get it checked independently before putting a horse in it. You need to allow for servicing approximately annually, the service is cheap but you'll need things like brake shoes and tyres every few years and if you need panel/ramp/floor replacement it gets more expensive. A well looked after trailer holds value well though so you won't lose too much cash.

I would get something that will be suitable for your next pony too as once you have got your trailer serviced and know it you won't want to sell and re-buy.

Lots of people on here have suggested an Ifor, but I would look at Bateson too, they're a bit cheaper to buy but great build quality and give a good ride.