Buying new

It will nearly always be cheaper to buy items second hand, but if you need or want to buy something brand new there are a few tips to help bring down the cost:

Type in the item you're looking for into the search bar of Google and select the 'products' page. 

This will give you an idea of the average price and where it might be cheapest - but don't forget to check if it the item is in stock, the final price (annoyingly some sites increase the price depending on size) including postage.

Almost all brands offer a newbies discount code the first time you order, and some such as Premier Equine offer ongoing loyalty discounts. 

Don't forget though, it's not the size of the discount but the final price - including postage - that counts. 

And always make sure to shop around as confusingly you might find  other sites selling the same product cheaper than the brand's own site. 

Check out the Discount Codes page as a good place to start. 

Don't forget to look further afield when you're shopping for equestrian goods as you might find them in some more general shops or sites, eg:

• Ebay - many people saying brand new items on Ebay, there are Ebay shops such as Eileen Douglas Tackshops and many shops have outlets on the site, such as Barbour
• Brand Alley - the designer discount site occassionally has brands such as Le Mieux, with an orange suede general purpose saddle pad for £22 or black original reflective tall Hunter boots for £59 - though delivery is £5.99 minimum. 
• Go Outdoors - has an equestrian section. It offers bigger discounts if you pay £5 a year for its membership. 
• SportsDirect - has brands such as Horseware, Shires and Ariat in its equestrian section.

Some of the bigger brands offer cashback via sites such as Topcashback or Quidco. 

For example, at the time of writing there's 5.95% at Ariat. 

These sites essentially pay you if you click through one of their links to go to a brand's site. 

There are a few things to remember:

• Read the terms and conditions, eg, cashback sites often won't pay if you use a discount code that isn't listed on their site 
• Check it's still the cheapest - there's no point using the cashback link if the end product  ends up being more expensive. 
• Cashback isn't instant so think of this as more of a bonus, particularly as the cashback isn't guaranteed. 

Some sites offer discounts on seconds or not-so-perfect items, such as Premier Equine which has a Returned Goods section of its website, where there's usually 50% off items. 

If you shop somewhere regularly it's worth seeing if they have a loyalty scheme. Think of points as a bonus, not a reason to shop somewhere, but if you're confident you're getting the best price then it's worth getting the points on top. 

Usually the best time to buy new items are is when the sales are on. There are usually major sales on Boxing Day, bank holidays, Black Friday (pretty much the whole of November) and basically any other day that companies can market as a good chance to buy presents or treat yourself - eg Valentine's Day. 

Often you'll see some of the best sales discounts when buying off season, eg, buying fly spray in the Winter sales and heavyweight rugs in Summer. 

You might find you've got access to other discount codes or cashback via your bank, insurance or even your job:

• Check your bank's app - eg Monzo sometimes has cashback on Ebay or American Express
• Check if your job gives you discounts - eg if you work for the NHS there might be codes via Health Service Discounts or the Blue Light Card, eg the latter gives 12% off at Equus and 10% at my local feed shop. 
• Check if a subscription gives you a discount - eg Harry Hall riding insurance gives you discount codes, or the premium version of the Equilab riding app - but these aren't a reason to buy the product in the first place, just worth checking if you already have them. 

If you're buying from a retailer, both instore and online, there are a few ways you can protect your payment, just in case something goes wrong:

• Pay on a debit or credit card - this means you may be able to call up your card provider and ask for their help getting a refund if there's a problem that the retailer won't help with. See MoneySavingExpert.com's Chargeback guide for debit card purchases, and those under £100 on a credit card. See its Section 75 guide for credit card a purchase over £100. 
• PayPal - may also give you some protection for items bought online, but there are exemptions such as items collected in person. 

If you're buying online, in most cases you can return the items if you change your mind. 

You just need to tell the firm that you want to return the items within the 14 days after receiving the items, you'll then have a further 14 days to send the items back. Exceptions include if the items are personalised or perishable. 

If you're buying in a shop, it'll depend on the store's own rules, eg, some may say exchange or credit only. 

If, however, the items you buy are faulty you have the same return rights whether you buy them instore or online. 

Items have to be satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and as described .

If they are not, you can ask for a full refund within 30 days of purchase, and the retailer must either collect the items or pay the reasonable cost of returning them. 

After 30 days, you may instead need to agree to a replacement or partial refund. See MoneySavingExpert.com for more.