Dog knocked down and person that knocked down the dog wants car fixed

thenightrider

Hi a friend had his dog hit by a car last night. someone came in to his driveway to turn there car around hit his dog and drove of at the time he did not know they hit his dog later he went out to the garden and found his dog brang the dog to the vet but died this morning.

Later that night the person came back with there dad demanding he pays to get the car fixed as his dog damaged his new car :eek: What do you guys think he should do i think he should be claiming of the driver my self.

seamus

Since the person was trespassing on private property at the time and the dog was not on a public road, the car owner has no grounds to claim. I would indeed be counter-claiming for the loss of the dog and also filing a claim for trespass.

ballsymchugh

did he drive uninvited into your friend's property??

Shanao

Hold on, did he hit the dog in the owner's driveway? So on the owner's property? I wouldn't think he has any right to claim for damages if he trespassed and hit the dog on his property. I might be wrong, but I wouldn't think so.

MattyMor

I would definitely get the police involved.

The driver was on the dog owners property. And killed his dog?! Then drove off not even making sure the dog was ok. Then actually had the b***s to return looking for money?!

I hope he has to pay for the vet bills or something that's ridiculous.

hidinginthebush

Edit: I think they should tell the car owners to get stuffed, try not to resort to violence but I don't think I'd be able to control myself if some smirking d!ckhead came anywhere near me after killing one of my dogs :mad: :mad:

thenightrider

He found the dog just out side his garden but thinks the dog got hit in the garden when it was tuning around its hard to tell as the driver did a hit and run Had he stoped the dog might have been able to be saved.

sundodger5

just turning round would be a very low speed hard to imagine any damage. however if there is damage i would assume dog got hit on the roadaway and managed to make it to the garden.

kildare.17hmr

Is there much damage to the car? if there is more than a scratch id be guessing the dog was hit outside on the road(assuming your mate lives in a housing estate of course and not somwhere with a big driveway!) if the dog was outside the garden your mate is liable for the damage

seamus

thenightrider wrote: »

He found the dog just out side his garden but thinks the dog got hit in the garden when it was tuning around its hard to tell as the driver did a hit and run Had he stoped the dog might have been able to be saved.

Well then at face value the guy has no case since he has no proof of anything.

If he had stopped at the time that he hit the dog, he might be able to prove that the dog was outside the owner's property. But now he can't. I'd tell him to get f*cked quite frankly.

Nonoperational

It all depends on where he was hit I think. If it was on the road he probably has a point, if on private property then no.

thenightrider

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

Is there much damage to the car? if there is more than a scratch id be guessing the dog was hit outside on the road(assuming your mate lives in a housing estate of course!) if the dog was outside the garden your mate is liable for the damage

Well he lives out in the country house by it self so there is more them enough room to do a u turn in his garden at speed.

I think even if he did hit the dog on the road the fact that he drove of and left the dog to die should give him no right to claim anything.

RosieJoe

I thought you had to report hitting a dog by law as it is a licenced animal, can anyone clear this up?

If it is and the driver didn't report it then let him know this is the case!

Either way, what a f*cker to hit a dog and drive off. They knew full well what they did as they were able to return later to claim for damages :mad:

Worztron

hidinginthebush wrote: »

Edit: I think they should tell the car owners to get stuffed, try not to resort to violence but I don't think I'd be able to control myself if some smirking d!ckhead came anywhere near me after killing one of my dogs :mad: :mad:

Yes, that driver is a selfish $&£%&. The poor dog died and they are just concerned about their poxy car. Damn materialistic low life.

seamus

Also worth noting that under section 106 of the road traffic act, it is an offence for a driver to leave the scene of an accident where injury to persons or property have been caused.

A dog falls under the legal definition of property here, so your friend has grounds to file a complaint with the local garda station for the hit-and-run offence.

I would generally go with telling them that - that if they even consider pursuing it, he'll be looking at a large fine and a driving ban for leaving the scene of an accident.

Quandary

RosieJoe wrote: »

I thought you had to report hitting a dog by law as it is a licenced animal, can anyone clear this up?

If it is and the driver didn't report it then let him know this is the case!

Either way, what a f*cker to hit a dog and drive off. They knew full well what they did as they were able to return later to claim for damages :mad:

Unfortunately, if the dog was on the public road and the driver can somehow prove this, then the dogs owner is liable for any damages to the car afaik.

I can't really see how the driver could prove this after leaving the scene though.

sundodger5

it would have to be a big dog and a speed above 20km to do anything except a scratch.
if he turned around at that speed in my garden he wouldn't do it twice. it could have been a child.
that said the fact he drove off leaves a simple fact. he could have got the damage anywhere between your friends house and home.
I would threaten the law on him if a dog licence is involved. its still leaving the scene of an accident I would imagine.

Misticles

:mad:

cannot believe someone would have the audacity (sp) to hit a beloved pet and return looking for money!!

If I hit any animal, it would shake me to the core and I would immediately inform the owner and insist on paying any bills! if the owner wasnt there I would take the animal to a vet myself. It's the decent thing to do!

Poor friend losing the dog like that

happened to my cat last year

Blueprint

Surely if he didn't stop at the time, there is nothing to link the damage to his car to your friend's dog? He could have damaged the car anywhere and just happened to have heard about the dog being knocked down after all.

280special

If the dog was on the road its the owner's liability, if the dog was hit on the owner's property it is the driver's liability. Simple and straight.

But what a sort of scummy b*****ks drives off knowing they hit a dog? I suppose the same sort of scummy b*****cks who let their dogs run loose on the road where they can get killed. Not saying this in reference to your friend for one minute , I am just mad as hell at a guy up the road who has now had at least 3 or maybe 4 dogs killed on the road in the past 6 months, and doesnt seem to care a damn !

kildare.17hmr

thenightrider wrote: »

Well he lives out in the country house by it self so there is more them enough room to do a u turn in his garden at speed.

I think even if he did hit the dog on the road the fact that he drove of and left the dog to die should give him no right to claim anything.

Id say he could still put in a claim if it was outside regardless of wether he drovwe off or not. ar$e hole of a driver BTW

Misticles wrote: »

:mad:
cannot believe someone would have the audacity (sp) to hit a beloved pet and return looking for money!!

If I hit any animal, it would shake me to the core and I would immediately inform the owner and insist on paying any bills! if the owner wasnt there I would take the animal to a vet myself. It's the decent thing to do!

Poor friend losing the dog like that

happened to my cat last year

Its the owners responsability to pay, my uncle hit a german shepard in his taxi a while back that was chasing another dog accross the road. the dog died and the car was badly damaged, he felt real bad and bought flowers and that for the owner but she still had to pay for the damage and rightly so!

Not saying thats the case here as we dont know for sure what happened just using it as an example is all

0O7

Alot of the time when a dog gets a belt, it will run (usually towards home) and then die... unless you can prove that it happened in the drive way...

Noo

He left the scene of an accident simple as that, and he knew damn right he hit the dog because he came back looking for money. He cant prove it was your friends dog that did the damage and leaving the scene will not work in his favour. Your friend would have a strong case against him and I suggest he pursues it especially if this guy is giving him hassle over payment.

Jasper79

0O7 wrote: »

Alot of the time when a dog gets a belt, it will run (usually towards home) and then die... unless you can prove that it happened in the drive way...

Think the onus would be on the driver to prove the dog was on the road, and as he fled the scene and did not report the accident don't see how they could do that, on the other hand they admitted hitting the dog so would pursue to have vet bills covered.

RobAMerc

did he hit the dog on the road and once the dog had fled come into the garden looking for the dog before fleeing ?

It's very hard to believe the guy hit the dog in the fella's garden while turning around and then the dog ran out onto the road.

btw - I am very sad for your friend, I lost a dog to a traffic accident before but my dog should not have been out, I was to blame, no one else !

280special

RosieJoe wrote: »

I thought you had to report hitting a dog by law as it is a licenced animal, can anyone clear this up?

I know that there was a very old law which required you to stop for a duck (or was it a hen?) but not any other small animal.In fact it would at one stage leave you liable of being charged with " stopping without due cause" if you stopped for a dog, cat etc and someone went into the back of your car.

Nearly as crazy as the law which was still in force the time I had a collision with a heifer which was part of a group of 5 or 6 cattle wandering the roads for about 12 hours. Animal wasnt hurt, it enjoyed the crumple zone of a Ford Escort bonnet giving it a lift up the road, but a Garda Sgt ( who at the same time confirmed the duck/hen law was in place ! ) advised me that if it had been injured I could be deemed liable. Think this was part of a law passed to allow farmers to feed their animals on the roadside during a feed shortage some time previously.

Hopefully these stupid laws have been removed from the books sometime in the last 20 years !

seamus

Jasper79 wrote: »

Think the onus would be on the driver to prove the dog was on the road, and as he fled the scene and did not report the accident don't see how they could do that, on the other hand they admitted hitting the dog so would pursue to have vet bills covered.

This is pretty much it.

It's catch-22 for the driver here. If he tries to claim that the dog was on the road, then he is guilty of leaving the scene of an accident. If he claims that the dog was in the garden, then he is liable to pay damages to the owner.

If the ignorant scumbag just hadn't driven off in the first place, he would have had a leg to stand on. It's quite refreshing to see someone getting bitten on the arse for breaking the law, for a change.

kildare.17hmr

seamus wrote: »

This is pretty much it.

It's catch-22 for the driver here. If he tries to claim that the dog was on the road, then he is guilty of leaving the scene of an accident. If he claims that the dog was in the garden, then he is liable to pay damages to the owner.

If the ignorant scumbag just hadn't driven off in the first place, he would have had a leg to stand on. It's quite refreshing to see someone getting bitten on the arse for breaking the law, for a change.

I dont think its that simple though, sure he could get a slap on the wrist for leaving the scene(i really doubt any more than that the way the gards opperate over here) but if the dog was on the road the owner is liable ether way id reckom

kildare.17hmr

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

I dont think its that simple though, sure he could get a slap on the wrist for leaving the scene(i really doubt any more than that the way the gards opperate over here) but if the dog was on the road the owner is liable ether way id reckom

He would still have to prove that the dog was on the road though.

Sounds like a complete and utter scumbag. The poor dog

kildare.17hmr

Deleted User wrote: »

He would still have to prove that the dog was on the road though.

Sounds like a complete and utter scumbag. The poor dog

True but all he would have to say is i was driving along the road and the dog ran out which would be more believable than the owner saying he was doing a U turn in my garden and ran over my dog, i no which story is more likely to be believed

Bigcheeze

Deleted User wrote: »

He would still have to prove that the dog was on the road though.

No he doesn't. There's no one to disagree with him and the dog was found on the road.

Bigcheeze

seamus wrote: »

It's catch-22 for the driver here. If he tries to claim that the dog was on the road, then he is guilty of leaving the scene of an accident. If he claims that the dog was in the garden, then he is liable to pay damages to the owner.

Not really because the car damage is a civil matter between the dog owner and car owner while leaving the scene is a criminal matter.......which the Guards would be concerned about in the case of people but not in the case of a dog, that is not under the control of its owner I'm afraid.

kildare.17hmr

Bigcheeze wrote: »

Not really because the car damage is a civil matter between the dog owner and car owner while leaving the scene is a criminal matter.......which the Guards would be concerned about in the case of people but not in the case of a dog, that is not under the control of its owner I'm afraid.

I would think this is about right. Bad as it is your friend lost his dog it should not have been out by its self in an unsecure garden and it damaged a car

TheMrs

As callous as it may seem that is why we have our two dogs insured. In the event they cause an accident we as owners could be liable and thus got pet insurance. I'm not sure about the whole issue of the driveway being private property. The person was reversing; not lingering on the property. However, they obviously weren't paying due care and attention. I think you friend should consult her insurance (if she has any) or maybe try Citizens Advice. It does seem to me that the person is chancing their arm. Are they quite young? I mean bringing their dad for back up is a bit lame.

TheMrs

And I have to say ditto on having the dog in an unenclosed area i.e. driveway. No matter how well trained they should be in a safe secure area. I assume they also leave the property line and probably foul up the neighbouring areas and gardens. :mad:

CramCycle

Bigcheeze wrote: »

No he doesn't. There's no one to disagree with him and the dog was found on the road.

OP said driver hit the dog in the driveway, it woukld appear that is what the driver claimed as well.

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

I would think this is about right. Bad as it is your friend lost his dog it should not have been out by its self in an unsecure garden and it damaged a car

The driver shouldn't have been in his driveway.

I'd tell him to get f'ed and if he starts hassling your friend, report him to the Gardaí. He admitted trespassing, damaging your friends property and leaving the scene of an accident.

Thats like someone swinging into my driveway, knocking down my kid and then coming back to look for damages, it was private property so he can just F'Off.

kildare.17hmr

CramCycle wrote: »

OP said driver hit the dog in the driveway, it woukld appear that is what the driver claimed as well.



The driver shouldn't have been in his driveway.

I'd tell him to get f'ed and if he starts hassling your friend, report him to the Gardaí. He admitted trespassing, damaging your friends property and leaving the scene of an accident.

Taking that attitude will get you nowhere and will make him run to his insurance company who will then come knocking

Thats like someone swinging into my driveway, knocking down my kid and then coming back to look for damages, it was private property so he can just F'Off.

no its not:rolleyes:

seamus

Bigcheeze wrote: »

while leaving the scene is a criminal matter.......which the Guards would be concerned about in the case of people but not in the case of a dog, that is not under the control of its owner I'm afraid.

It doesn't make a difference if it's people or property, it's the same offence. The penalties do differ, but it's still a serious offence with a large fine attached.
Make enough noise and the Gardai will prosecute.

CramCycle

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

no its not:rolleyes:

In terms of damage done, of course not, I was being facetious.

I was just annoyed at the gall of the driver. He was in the wrong, let him go to the insurance company, they will probably tell him to shove it (alas in a more polite tone).

planetX

He has no chance - if he was worried about his car he would have stopped at the scene of the accident and got out and checked for damage. Then reported it. Too late to come back later, now who's to say where you found the body of the dog???
Poor dog:(

Jasper79

Surely tyre marks on road if dog ran out on road would assume driver applied brakes hard.... Also driver knew which house the dog belonged too....

kildare.17hmr

Here is a hypothetical scenario. Dog runs onto road, dog gets hit by driver. Dog gets up and runs home, as does happen, so driver thinks the dog is ok so drives on and realises his car is damaged when he gets home!

Not beyond possability, the shepard my uncle hit made it all the way back to his house a few hundred meters away:eek:

curlywurly26

I don't know if it's the same here, but I'm from NI and there you're legally obliged to report hitting a dog to the police if you can't contact the owners. This sin't true for cats or other small animals, but dogs you must stop for! There may be different legislation down here though..?

So yes if the dog was on the road then you are liable for the damage, but as he should have stopped and didn't then he may not have a leg to stand on.

If he was on your property, then he definately should have told you about it and he won't be able to claim anything.

I find it hard to believe that anyone could be so awful as to hit a dog on someones property and not bother to let the owners know - that's a grade A scumbag there!

CramCycle

thenightrider wrote: »

Hi a friend had his dog hit by a car last night. someone came in to his driveway to turn there car around hit his dog and drove of at the time he did not know they hit his dog later he went out to the garden and found his dog brang the dog to the vet but died this morning.

Later that night the person came back with there dad demanding he pays to get the car fixed as his dog damaged his new car :eek: What do you guys think he should do i think he should be claiming of the driver my self.

Just to remind people, the OP said it happened on the driveway, how he knows, I am unsure, maybe the driver said that is where it happened, who knows, but the point is that in this context, we are not talking about a dog on the road, we are talking about the owners dog on the owners property, being knocked down and killed, it is the fault of the driver in this context and he should not have the utter contempt for dignity that he would come seeking damages.

If the OP is mistaken, thats a completly different thread, in the scenario given though, the driver can SUCK IT.

seamus

curlywurly26 wrote: »

I don't know if it's the same here, but I'm from NI and there you're legally obliged to report hitting a dog to the police if you can't contact the owners. This sin't true for cats or other small animals, but dogs you must stop for! There may be different legislation down here though..?

It's exactly the same here. Where you are involved in an accident which results in damage to property (including a dog), you are obliged to stop the vehicle and supply your name & address to an authorised person. An authorised person is
- A Garda
- The property owner, or if they're unavailable someone else in charge of the property (such as a family member)
- Where no-one connected to the property is available, any other witness is an "authorised person", provided they were not in the vehicle at the time (i.e. are not accompanying the driver) and are not employing or employed by the driver.

Where an authorised person is not available, you are obliged to go to the nearest Garda station immediately to report the incident.

Taltos

thenightrider wrote: »

dog hit by a car last night.
someone came in to his driveway to turn
hit his dog and drove of at the time
died this morning.

Later that night the person came back with there dad demanding he pays to get the car fixed as his dog damaged his new car
What do you guys think he should do

Just called out key points.
1. Driver killed the dog.
2. Driver left the scene of an accident
3. Dog may have been saved if treated in time.
4. Dog more than likely suffered.

Personally I would do 3 things.
1. Contact Gardai and report this incident - stress the driver left without informing anyone of what happened - keep pushing on this.
2. Contact a solicitor for death and suffering of a family pet due to trespass.
3. Contact the drivers insurance company and let them know that their policy holder was involved in an accident while trespassing and left the scene of said accident.

In short - I would go for this drivers short and curlies - blood boiling at this tale.

Discodog

Whether the dog was on a public road or private land one could argue that it constituted cruelty in that the car driver subjected the animal to unnecessary suffering. The driver injured the dog & then failed to report it so that the dog could receive treatment.

Assuming that a dog is regarded as property then the Rules of the Road state:

"If the accident damages only property and there is a Garda in the immediate vicinity you must report it to the Garda. If there is no Garda available you must provide this information to the owner or the person in charge of the property. If, for any reason, neither a Garda nor the owner is immediately available you must give all relevant information at a Garda station as soon a reasonable possible."

One question - did the dog have a name tag on it's collar ?

trishasaffron

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

Here is a hypothetical scenario. Dog runs onto road, dog gets hit by driver. Dog gets up and runs home, as does happen, so driver thinks the dog is ok so drives on and realises his car is damaged when he gets home!

Not beyond possability, the shepard my uncle hit made it all the way back to his house a few hundred meters away:eek:

Personally think this is not just a hypothetical scenario but in fact the likeliest one. Happened to me once as a penniless student driving my Dad's car. Animal ran out, impossible to stop the car, so fast I didn't even know what happened. Saw animal dashing away - drove on - found out when I got home that car badly damaged. No idea to whom animal belonged. I had to pay for repairs and felt v hard done by. Dog owners are responsible for keeping their animal under control.

I find it v hard to credit that turning a car in a driveway could cause enough harm to kill a dog.

Discodog

trishasaffron wrote: »

I find it v hard to credit that turning a car in a driveway could cause enough harm to kill a dog.

It's actually quite common. I know of three local dogs that were all killed in driveways ......by their owners :eek: One guy managed to run over one his own dogs whilst collecting turf & then a month later he ran over his other dog.

CramCycle

trishasaffron wrote: »

I find it v hard to credit that turning a car in a driveway could cause enough harm to kill a dog.

My uncle killed my neighbours dog in his driveway, a neighbour killed our dog reversing in our drive way.

It's in fact not just likely, it's outright possible.

Noo

You hear awful stories of parents running over and killing children reversing out of driveways etc. so definitely possible to kill a dog, and even more so depending on the dogs size.