Equine vet’s ‘lifelong vocation in tatters’ amid insurance row

An equine vet who was warned not to go near a horse again after a serious neck injury has spoken out about her fight for “justice” in an insurance dispute.

Judy Scrine said she wants to warn others about the risks of income protection cover after she discovered her policy only classed her as a general vet, not one working in equine medicine, when she made a claim.

The provider involved, Unum, claims it has accepted liability and rejected a complaint about its handling of the case.

Disingenuous

But Dr Scrine, who has been in practice since 1991 and an equine vet since 2001, described the firm’s conduct as “deliberately disingenuous” and said she has lodged a complaint with the Financial Ombudsman.

She fears many more vets could be in a similar position without knowing it and hopes sharing her experience now will alert the wider profession to the potential risks.

She said: “It has become a point of principle on which I’m now arguing. I don’t want this to happen to anyone else. My lifelong vocation is in tatters.”

Claim lodged

Dr Scrine, from West Sussex, suffered a prolapsed and herniated cervical disc, which eventually required surgery, following an incident at work in December 2020.

Although she was able to return to her job following treatment, she sustained a further similar injury in February this year, at which point she was advised by her consultant not to work with horses again.

She said she lodged a claim on her policy because of the risk of further injury, including possible paralysis, if she continued to work.

Documents seen by Vet Times indicate that, if upheld fully, the policy would pay out a maximum of £30,000 a year until her 60th birthday in 2026 – a total of about £100,000.

But, although an email in early August suggested Unum had accepted liability in her case, a subsequent letter said that only related to Dr Scrine’s period of recovery, which it estimated to be six weeks, from her operation in July – a decision Dr Scrine claims would mean she only received the equivalent of two‑and-a-half weeks’ money.

Accepted

The company said it accepted she had been incapacitated from 21 February until 22 August and the claim would not end until she had recovered.

However, in refusing to uphold a complaint by Dr Scrine about the handling of her case, Unum insisted it was right to assess the claim based on “the material and substantial duties of your occupation” as listed on the policy, despite the potential need for her to retrain to take up a different role.

The letter continued: “This is the term that our claims team referred to in their decision letter when they stated that the claim was assessed based on the ‘generic duties’ of a veterinary surgeon, as opposed to a vet specialising in horses’ care. I have also reviewed the policy schedule which lists your occupation as a ‘veterinary surgeon’.

“Having considered your complaints against the policy’s definitions and conditions, I do not agree the claim has been assessed unfairly and against the incorrect occupation.

“While I am sympathetic to your situation and understand that you feel you may need to retrain, when your condition allows, the policy’s definition of ‘occupation’ makes it clear that the claim is not assessed on ‘the specific duties of your personal role’.”

‘Repeatedly frustrated’

A Unum spokesperson told Vet Times the company had accepted the claim “and that remains the current position”.

She added: “Unum does consider the functional requirements of the insured occupation as defined under the policy.”

But Dr Scrine said she had been repeatedly frustrated by the company’s behaviour and described the email claiming acceptance of liability as “disingenuous and misleading”.

She added: “Their motivation is to not pay. I have dealt with equine insurance my whole career and I know what they are like, but even then I have categorically failed.

“You could say it’s my fault for not checking the small print. I didn’t think people would behave like this. I thought I was insured to do the job I was paid to do.”

Asked about the case’s impact on her, she said: “It’s been horrible, it really has.

“You feel bad about leaving your clients in the lurch. You’re used to a position of some importance in the community and, all of a sudden, that just stops.

“I’ve spent 31 years building up an equine veterinary career and it’s just gone overnight.”