Body protectors: BETA 2018, EN 13158 and the rules that require them.

EN 13158 and the BETA standard

EN 13158 is the European standard for protective jackets, body protectors and shoulder protectors for riders, people working with horses and carriage drivers. BETA (the British Equestrian Trade Association) records its editions: EN 13158:2000 was revised as EN 13158:2009, with new dimensions and test procedures but the same impact performance, and that was revised as EN 13158:2018, which BETA says broadly relaxed dimensions and test procedures while again leaving impact performance unchanged.

The BETA 2018 Standard is dated 29 June 2018. Garments certified under BETA's scheme must meet every requirement of EN 13158:2018. A BETA certificate from the test house lasts one year, and renewal means re-testing; BETA says garments are re-tested every year for consistency of materials and manufacture. The test houses named in BETA's scheme document are SATRA (Kettering) and Intertek (Leicester). BETA also has a separate standard for shoulder protectors.

BETA states that garments made to BETA 2009 also meet EN 13158:2018 and BETA 2018 if the standard's conditions are met, and that protection performance does not differ between the 2009 and 2018 versions. Which labels a competition accepts is set by each body, below.

The three levels

Level 1

Protection BETA considers appropriate only for licensed jockeys. Its swing ticket says it is designed for professional jockeys' racing weight limits and gives significantly less protection than Levels 2 and 3.

Level 2

Lower than normal protection, for situations BETA calls low risk. BETA's website adds that licensed jockeys may use it where their racing authority specifies it.

Level 3

Protection BETA considers appropriate for normal riding, for competitions including eventing, and for working with horses. BETA says Level 3 should prevent minor bruising, reduce soft tissue injuries and prevent a limited number of rib fractures.

Level 3 for drivers

A separate Level 3 garment for carriage drivers and passengers. BETA warns that it does not give enough back coverage for riders.

The labels

BETA 2018 garments carry a compulsory sew-in label obtained only from BETA: green on black for Level 1, orange on black for Level 2 and turquoise on black for Level 3, with a triangle overprinted on the drivers' version. Labels carry issue numbers that change from time to time. BETA requires the label to be easy to see when worn and while mounted, so officials can check the standard, and notes that an air jacket can hide it. The swing ticket says the standard is "NOT A GUARANTEE OF SAFETY" and that any alteration may mean the garment no longer conforms.

The Level 3 colour has two names. The BETA standard calls the sew-in label turquoise on black, but its own swing-ticket text says "Blue 2018". The BHS events guidance (2022) also calls it a blue 2018 label, and the 2009 label purple, while the Irish Pony Club's 2026 tack sheet calls it turquoise. They appear to describe the same label.

BETA lists labels that are obsolete and should not be worn: Level 5 or 7, Class 1, 2 or 3, and BETA 2000 Level 1, 2 or 3.

Who requires a body protector, and which

• FEI eventing. The FEI Eventing Rules (27th edition, effective 1 January 2026), Annex O, make body protectors compulsory for the cross-country test, including when schooling over cross-country fences at any time, and say back protectors do not count as body protectors. The rule as reproduced in Equestrian Australia's 2026 rulebook names no standard; the Chronicle of the Horse made the same point in 2019.
• Equestrian Australia. EA's national rule 3.1.1 (2026 eventing rules) has required, since 1 January 2020, a cross-country body protector made after 2009 and labelled EN 13158:2009 Level 3, BETA 2009 Level 3, EN 13158:2018 Level 3 or BETA 2018 Level 3. From 1 January 2027 the protector must have been made after 2018.
• UK eventing, riding clubs and Pony Club. From January 2024 BETA 2009 garments are no longer accepted by British Eventing, British Riding Clubs and The Pony Club, leaving BETA 2018 as the only accepted label for them (BETA; Your Horse, December 2022). BETA's reason: a rule has to apply to every garment with the same label, 2009 garments stopped being made at the end of 2018, and some still in use could be up to 13 years old. BETA adds that 2009 garments may still be worn for general riding and activities that do not specify the later label. Earlier, Horse & Country reported that British Eventing stopped accepting BETA Level 3 garments labelled 2000 from 1 January 2018.
• BHS events. The BHS Events Body Protector Guidelines (2022, version 1) accept, where a body protector is mandatory, only BETA Level 3 with a purple 2009 or blue 2018 label, with one exception for Exo Body Cage protectors carrying a purple BETA Level 3 2000 label, and anticipated accepting 2009 labels until 2025. That differs from the January 2024 end date used by BE, BRC and The Pony Club. We did not find a later BHS position.
• Irish Pony Club. Its 2026 cross-country tack sheet requires body protectors for cross-country training and competition, and makes BETA Level 3 (turquoise) 2018 or any later revision compulsory for cross country.
• US Equestrian. Eventing rule EV9.2 (effective 1 October 2023) requires a body protecting vest in the cross-country warm-up and phase, and recommends one that meets or exceeds ASTM F1937 or is SEI certified; violations may be penalised up to elimination at the Ground Jury's discretion. The Chronicle of the Horse reported that the US Pony Club required body protectors for riders jumping solid obstacles or cross-country fences from 1 January 2019.

What bodies say a body protector does

US Equestrian (May 2020) says body protectors reduce penetrating torso injuries and how often ribs are broken, mainly on cross country, and that they do not give direct spinal protection or protect against crushing or severe twisting and bending injuries. The BHS recommends Level 3 and says no body protector can prevent serious injury in every situation. The Chronicle of the Horse (2019) reported a 2018 BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine analysis of US Pony Club accident reports that associated cross-country body protector use with a lower relative risk of injury, and no link on the flat or in show jumping; we did not check the figures against the paper itself. A suspected injury after a fall needs medical care.

Whether a garment meets a particular competition's rule is decided by that body's current rules and its officials. Air vests, which some bodies allow over a body protector, are on the air vests page, and replacement intervals are on the lifespan page.