Pony bought for €67,000 ‘refused to jump’, High Court told

A pony bought for €67,000 and intended for use by a teenage girl in showjumping competitions refused to jump and was not safe, it has been claimed at the High Court.

Martin and Helen Carway, from Bleach Road, Kilkenny, are suing father and son, Walter and Jonathan Reape, and a company, Northerly Ltd. They claim the terms of the purchase agreement for the pony meant the defendants would take it back if it did not work out as a showjumper.

The defendants deny their claims, say they only agreed to replace the pony if it did not work out and never said they would reimburse the Carways. They had offered to replace the pony, the defendants contend.

The pony, the court heard, turned out to be a "stopper", meaning it would not jump when first brought to events in January and February 2012. Since then, it has not been ridden by the Carway's daughter Anna and remains in a stables in Wales.

Opening the case for the Carways, Jeremy Maher SC said they bought it in 2011 for then 14-year-old Anna, with the intention of allowing her compete in showjumping competitions.

It was claimed it was represented to them the pony, Castle Hill Clover, would be safe and capable of performing at a top level for two years.

At their first meeting to look at the animal in the Reape equestrian centre at Ard Chuain in Sligo, Walter Reape told Mr Carway he did not “do trials” but said “if it does not work out, I will take it back”, counsel said.

The Carways paid the €67,000 by bank transfer to Northerly Ltd whose co-principal is Walter Reape.

When it was discovered the pony was a stopper, Mr Reape senior was initially conciliatory and said they would work something out, counsel said. However, by the next day, he was “a little hostile” and said he had never agreed to take the pony back.

Mr Reape later said he may have originally said he would take it back but never said he would give the Carways their money back and insisted he only said he would replace it.

Other claims included that the company was the vendor and there was no written contract for sale, counsel said.

The Carways had participated in efforts to find a replacement but after that was unsuccessful they consulted their solicitors.

Counsel said the defendants also refused to consent to an agreement in March 2013 to sell the pony for stg£25,000 and it was not sold.

The Carways were now seeking an order for specific performance of the agreement the defendants would take the animal back, along with costs of stabling the animal since 2012, and damages, counsel said.

The case continues before Mr Justice David Keane.