During the jump season one of the biggest disappointments a punter can have is when a horse falls at a fence before even having a shot at the winning post. To give you an idea of the size of this problem, during the last National Hunt season alone Coral the bookmaker refunded bets on 1062 horses that fell in their selected races.
Although jump races are held year round the National Hunt jump season proper lasts from mid-October through to the end of April. Seen as less prestigious than flat races with generally lower prize money the National Hunt does boast possibly the two biggest races in the world in the Aintree Grand National and the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
In this article we will tell you what bookmakers are giving the best insurance if your horse does fall. We will tell you the races to look out for and how to best bet and win with faller insurance as well as common terms and conditions.
For racing free bets, bonuses and money back, best odds guaranteed and other promotions see our other racing offers pages.
Best Faller Insurance Bookmakers & Betting Sites
The most reliable faller insurance offer each year is Coral’s, running for many years now the deal is dependable and the bookie really does pay a lot out in refunds through the season. It’s even better this season too as now Coral are covering you for all horses that fail to finish in selected races, this includes fallers, horses brought down and those that unseat the jockey, but also now covers horses that pull up, bolt or refuse to race.
In early 2015 much fancied and backed female jockey Annie Power was a full six lengths clear at the Cheltenham only to fall at the last fence. This reputedly cost punters around £40 million in winnings but if you backed the horse with Coral you wouldn’t have lost a penny up to £10 stake.
You will be glad to know the popular improved offer is back for the 2020-21 National Hunt jump season. On at least one jump meeting every day, and often more than one, get fail to finish insurance from Coral. If the horse fails to complete the race you will get money back on states up to £10 as a horse racing free bet (valid for 7 days). Refunds on £1+ win singles and the win part of £1+ each-way bets.
The faller cover available from 10bet isn’t quite as big as other comparable offers and is only available on mobile, refunding win stakes up to £10 if a horse falls, is brought down or a jockey unseated. Although the max refund is lower this offer has the benefit of being available for at least one meeting each day during the National Hint season.
Therefore if you bet on lots of jump racing, more than just the big feature race meetings, then you could certainly get a lot back over the course of a season with 10bet. Money back as an unrestricted free bet valid for one week, use at odds between evens and 7/1 claim up to once/race.
In addition get money back if your horse is beaten into second by a head in any race. Most bookies only run these offers for the flat season but 10bet run their ‘2nd by a head or less’ promotion all year round, in addition to faller insurance.
Quinnbet have Irish origins and so it is no surprise they take horse racing seriously. The bookie is great for offers in general but no sport carries more deals with them than horse racing, with 10+ live at any one time.
They are particularly good at long term retention offers that give you money back as a free bet. This means you are covered on most racing bets rather than select racing offers that come and go, a lot like bet365 who they are most akin too.
Faller insurance is available for select races and meeting with Quinnbet but in reality that covers most major jump meetings over the year. You can get up to £10 back as a free bet if your horse falls, is brought down or unseats the rider in any of those races. Free bet can be used on any sports at 1/2+.
With BetGoodwin if you back a horse in any UK or Irish horse race and the horse falls at the last hurdle or fence when it is leading you will get your win stake refunded as a free bet.
While this offer isn’t as expansive as other faller insurance offers it does give a refund up to £100 as a free bet. It does require a minimum £10 win or £10 each-way bet to qualify. It doesn’t apply to ante-post markets and excludes multiples and Lucky 15s, etc.
While horses can fall at any stage naturally the later in the race the more chance it has as tiredness sets in, especially if leading and pushing for the win.
How To Bet and Win with Faller Insurance
During the Jump season it certainly makes sense to take these deals when available. Combined with other features such as best odds guaranteed and enhanced odds deals they can really add value to your bets.
National Hunt races tend to have larger fields than flat races and are usually longer. Faller insurance is particularly useful in large fields where conflict between horses can cause more falls or jockeys being unseated. The weather is also a major factor, it is obvious that wet and muddy tracks (which naturally occur more in the winter during the jump season anyway) will make slips and falls more common. Finally consider both the distance and the types of jumps to be tackled. Hurdles races have smaller fences than steeplechases and so less horses falling.
In the long run if you primarily back outright win singles on jump races the faller insurance will give you higher returns. As with the Coral offer, if you are getting features such as best odds guaranteed and enhanced places anyway the deals can really add up to a tidy racing packages.
By the way don’t expect to get faller insurance on the Grand National, but do expect to see faller insurance for the Cheltenham festival.
For information on the best horse racing bookies, type and terminologies, horse racing bet types, how to bet and more see our horse racing guide to betting.
Faller Insurance T&C’s
- Pulling Up – If the horse pulls up with jockey still seated then you will not get your money back.
- Other Non-Finishing Reasons – If the horse fails to finish for any reason other than falling, unseating or being brought down then you will not qualify for the refund.
- Each-Way – You will only be refunded on win singles or the win part of each way bets. Place bets, tote bets and other will not be included in the promotion. Bets on Win-only or other special markets will also not be counted.
- Stewards Decision – This is final and binding for the bookie.
- Bumper Races – These are flat races at National Hunt meetings. If there is a bumper race included in a qualifying meeting then there is no reason why faller insurance shouldn’t be applied. Then again there is much less reason for your horse to fall.
- Refund – Most refunds will be as a free bet, or even a restricted free bet that can only be wagered on horse racing. The free token must be wagered in one go and will expire after a given time. Occasionally some bookie may offer faller insurance with cash or promo cash refunds. Stakes will also only be returned to a certain amount, usually £25.
- Ante-Post – These bets will usually not qualify for the money back promotions. The Coral deal for example applies to bets placed on qualifying meetings from 6pm the day before the race for example.
- Disqualification – If your horse is disqualified then you will not be paid out, either if it wins or a refund if it falls.