Sunland Ranch Icelandics Olivenhain , California

Beware of doing business with Sunland Ranch and Kimberly Hart. I have first-hand knowledge about how Kimberly Hart sold a horse to a woman, accepted the horse back as a return after the woman said she was unhappy with it, and promised a full refund to this woman. However, Kimberly Hart and Sunland Ranch then sold the horse again to someone else and never gave the woman a refund.

Kimberly Hart sells a particular breed of horses -- Icelandic horses. This breed, developed in Iceland, is known for its relatively small size (about the size of a pony when fully grown) and its hardiness. They are also know for being very spirited and can be a bit headstrong.

The woman who bought the Icelandic from Kimberly, Barbara Drosman, paid $12,500. But since Icelandics are known for sometimes being temperamental, Barbara made sure that a condition of the sale was that she could return the horse if it was unsuitable for her. She wanted a healthy horse that was calm and that a beginning rider could handle. Kimberly agreed to that condition and sold the horse to Barbara.

But Barbara quickly realized the horse was too much for her to handle, so she returned it to Kimberly and asked for a refund. Kimberly accepted the horse and said a refund would be forthcoming. However it didn't materialize. It's now been five years since the sale and return of the horse, and Barbara is still waiting for her refund.

As I mentioned, this particular Icelandic horse was sold a second time. So now Kimberly Hart has collected twice on the sale of one horse. Barbara is patient, but she's not dumb. She filed suit against Kimberly Hart and Sunland Ranch at the end of 2011 for breach of contract. Barbara is still waiting for the outcome and for a refund of her money, as initially promised.

I'll say it again: Beware of doing business with Kimberly Hart and Sunland Ranch!