By Simon Dutton
THIS ALSO APPLIES TO CATS!!
The number of dogs that are being killed on UK roads is increasing each year as a result of car accidents. Dog owners could be responsible for costs and even liable to criminal charges. If that's not adding to the stress of the incident, you as the owner of the dog could also be liable for all rectification costs and possibly be prosecuted under the Road Traffic Act.
The Road Traffic Act classes a dog as an animal that is not free to roam, unlike sheep and cattle. Therefore, the dog owner will be responsible for the dog's actions on the public highway. If it can be proved in court that the accident was due to the dog being on the road, the dog owner will be liable for the costs which can sometimes be thousands of pounds.
This is what happened to June Lillis, when her dog Sebastian, was hit and killed by a car. She suffered the agony of losing her dog and the stress of the financial burden of paying for the damage to the driver's car. She explained:
"At first the driver was only concerned for Sebastian, and he helped my eldest son take him into our house. But a couple of weeks after the accident, we received a letter from his insurers advising us that we were at fault for the accident, and therefore the damage to the car. Luckily, the damage only cost £70 to repair, but we were shocked to learn we were responsible. The crash happened at night, and the driver said he never saw the dog, but we chalked it up to a tragic accident. When my husband rang the man's insurers, they advised him that we would have to go to court to prove we were not at fault."
Campaigners for road safety are advising cyclists and pedestrians to wear clothing that is highly visible, especially at night and during winter. Dogs are often walked off their leads or they escape from their owners properties. They can seem to appear from nowhere and often when it is too late to take avoiding action.
Gloweasy supply Pet Reflective Danglers to help prevent these avoidable accidents.
All of our Reflective Danglers are made from a high visibility reflective prismatic PVC.
The Gloweasy Dangler's are made by sandwiching a foam centre with flexible reflective materials both sides, this produces a product that is soft, pliable and very tactile. The type of attachment varies, but they are extremely effective hanging from your Dog's collar for safety.
The disc is 2 inches (50mm) in diameter and has a high visibility paw design on both sides. Also reflective on both sides with a strong dog clip connector. When in place they hang approx 90mm (3.5") and they clip quickly to virtually any collar or lead and are just as easily removed when the pet is indoors. Being double sided, their highly reflective surfaces can be illuminated from many directions. They are even more effective when worn in a cluster of two or more.
Other applications see them working very well as luggage tags or bag tags, so attached to a child's school bag will also safeguard them at night.
For more info click here http://www.gloweasy.com/reflective-danglers/index1.html |