In 2018 Heimildin wrote an investigative article about several companies offering horse riding tours. They posed as a 19 year old Danish women, looking for a job guiding horse riding tours. According to the article, Sólhestar, Lýsuhóll, Geysir hestar, Hestasport, Alhestar, Kíðafell, Stóri-Kambur, Hestaleigan Galsi, Hömluholt, Leirubakki, Jóreykir, Oddsstaðir, Skálakot and Giljar wrote back, offering volunteering opportunities for food and accommodation and wages much lower than specified in the collective agreement. Below are the screenshots of some of the exchanges, as they appeared in the articles:
Alhestar:
- prepare the horses for tours, guiding, stable work, helping with booking
- shared accommodation and food offered
- pay 12000kr per week
Hestasport:
- job requirement list of two pages including ability to ride and take care of horses; knowledge about Icelandic geography, geology, history and culture; knowledge about human rights and insurance; guiding
- 40% of the job is cleaning the cottages for tourist accommodation
- wage 80.000kr per months, accommodation included
- employee has to provide their own food and health insurance
Lýsuhóll:
- no salary
- food and accommodation (in a shared room with several other girls) provided
- no hours / responsibilities specified
Sólhestar:
- working time from 7:45a, to 5 pm, might be longer
- around 7 hours a day spent riding
- paid time off, but only if one day is taken, not when several days in a row
- 120.000kr a months accommodation provided in a shared house
- “we are like a small family”
- worker registered with a kennitala only if working more than 3 months
Sources published in March and April 2018:
- https://heimildin.is/grein/6475/hestaleigur-graeda-tugi-milljona-felagslegum-undirbodum
- https://heimildin.is/grein/6671/svindlkeppni-eda-samkeppni
Sólhestar ehf. (kt:590111-0580); Real owner: Sólmundur Sigurðsson (company registry)
Lýsuhóll: Snæhestar ehf. (kt:430517-0660); Real owners: Jóhanna Bára Ásgeirsdóttir and Agnar Gestsson (company registry)
Geysir Hestar: Registered under owner Hjalti Gunnarsson (kt:180754-5719) (company registry)
Hestasport (kt:520692-2909) (company registry) and Hestasport – Ævintýraferðir ehf (kt: 500594-2769) (company registry); Real owner of both: Magnús Sigmundsson.
Alhestar: Maggi Emm ehf. (kt:540206-1040); Real owner: Magnús Georg Jensen (company registry)
Kiðafell ehf. (kt:620101-3030); Real owners: Guðbjörg Þorvarðardóttir, Margrét Þorvarðardóttir, Sigríður Þorvarðardóttir and Þorkell Gunnar Hjaltason (company registry)
Stóri-Kambur: Pegron ehf. (kt:711201-2030); Real owner: Hjörtur Sigurðsson (company registry)
Hestaleigan Galsi: Registered under owner Jón Árni Magnússon (kt:(191091-3459) (company registry)
Hömluholt ehf. (kt:640107-0810); Real owner: Gísli Guðmundsson (company registry)
Leirubakki: Leirubakki-ferðaþjónusta ehf (kt:471005-0880) (company registry); Leirubakki-hrossaræktarbú ehf (kt:471005-1500) (company registry) and Embla – ferðaþjónusta ehf (kt:650405-0210) (company registry); Real owners of all three: Anders Hansen and Valgerður Kr Brynjólfsdóttir
Jóreykir ehf (kt:630305-0390); Real owner: Hrafnhildur Guðmundsdóttir and Jóhannes Kristleifsson (company registry)
Oddsstaðir ehf. (kt:550217-2600); Real owner: Guðbjörg Ólafsdóttir and Sigurður Oddur Ragnarsson (company registry)
Hestaleigan Skálakoti: Registered under owner: Guðmundur Jón Viðarsson (kt:151264-3609) (company registry). He is also registered together with Jóhanna Sólveig Þórhallsdóttir as the real owner of Gerandi ehf. (kt:4812150480) (company registry)
Giljar horses & handcraft seems to not be a horse rental anymore.