Dog ran out in front of car. Claiming costs

[MsFanackerPants]

Hello,

Hope somebody can help me. Just before Xmas my partner was driving to work. The road is 60 limit and he was doing about 55. As he was driving he saw a large gate open and a dog ran out of it and straight into the road. DP was unable to avoid hitting it and sadly he did.

The owner ran out, scooped up the dog who was very badly injured and put the dog in his car and drove off. DP was very shaken up by it and spoke to two people who saw the incident.

DPs car was quite badly damaged and needed over £500 worth of work. He has paid out of pocket rather than claim via insurance as excess plus loss of NCB would be more. DP has not been able to speak to the owner but we know his name and address.

DP feels terrible about the dog but also we cannot afford to take the hit, we have a 7 week old baby and I'm on Mat Leave. I know that legally the owner is liable as dog was out of control. If owner has pet insurance then this would cover the cost of repairs. If not, then DP will have to pursue via small claims.

Sooo, how to phrase the initial letter asking owner to pay the costs of repair? We don't know if the dog survived (seems unlikely) and it seems a bit crass not to mention it at all, but on the other hand DP doesn't want to do anything that indicates he is liable as he is not, the witnesses confirmed that he was not speeding and the dog was out of control.

Can anybody help us draft a letter that shows DP feels bad about dog but that accident not his fault and that he should not be left in a worse financial position?

Sneeze not always. The dh didn't see what happened on the other side of the gate. It could be a one off, something startled the dog and it bolted for example.

As much as I can sympathise with your DH, there are formal legal procedures which he has not followed.

You are legally obliged to report ANY accident involving your vehicle whether or not you wish to claim off your insurance. You must inform your insurance company "for information purposes only".

In addition, because it involved an animal, you MUST report it, in person, to a police station within 24 hours. You must show them a valid insurance certificate within 7 days of reporting. Whether or not it is your "fault" you must do this.

You are also obliged, at the time of the accident, to give your personal details to the other party i.e. name, address, registration number and name of owner of vehicle.

A failure to comply with these obligations can mean two offences are being committed: failing to stop and failing to report. It is possible to be guilty of either or both. The penalties for each offence include a maximum fine of £5,000 and five to ten penalty points. The court also has the power to disqualify you from driving for either offence and is likely to do so when both offences are committed on the same occasion. Failing to stop or report an accident can carry a maximum of six months' imprisonment.

Even if there was no personal injury involved, if someone holds you responsible for the accident, they have the right to request your insurance details. This request can be made later; it does not necessarily have to be at the time of the accident. A failure to provide that information without a reasonable excuse is also an offence.

The dog owner could make a claim and say that you were in fact driving recklessly, speeding. How would you prove otherwise?

It will also be a condition of your insurance policy that you report the accident to your insurance company within a reasonable time, even if you do not want to claim yourself. A failure to do so can give your insurance company the right to refuse to cover you in the future.

The courts DO take the view that ignorance is no excuse ie. thinking you don't have to report it if you did not claim/tell your insurance company.

Bore. It makes no difference what the dog did or didn't do or how out of character. The owner should have been exercising reasonable care to ensure her dog didn't run out onto a busy road. In this case it should have been on a lead before the gate was opened.

Even dogs burrowing under fencing or jumping over a fence isn't always a defence. Though I suppose a dog teaching itself to bounce on a trampoline and leap over an 8 foot fence might qualify as unforeseeable

If the police really wanted to they could prosecute for failure to stop .
Might be best to just keep quiet now?

You are legally obliged to report ANY accident involving your vehicle whether or not you wish to claim off your insurance

Simply not true.

In addition, because it involved an animal, you MUST report it, in person, to a police station within 24 hours

Also not true in this case as the owner was at the scene.

the dogs owner is responsible for costs to your vehicle as their animal was iut of control in a public space..control of dogs act.
plus I was in this scenario before.our dog was the one who got out in the road.we paid the damages.
go to a police station and see if its possible to give statement in retrospect.
send the letter.if no luck then pursue with a solicitor.

I think you have missed the boat to be honest

It doesn't sound like negligence to me it sounds like an accident your DH should call the insurance company and ask them what their advice is

If you have home contents insurance you should check your policy you may well have a legal helpline he could run the situation past them

Also, surely if you wanted them to bear the cost they should have had the opportunity to get several quotes, get the damage independently assessed, etc?