Speeding Car hits dog, who Liable

shy

Hi Guys

Im just after hearing a w###ker in a speeding car is just after killing our 10 yr old dog. The dog ran after the car, the driver was speeding and now my dog is dead, Im devasted as is the rest of the family. My question is who is liable us as dog owners or the driver for speeding in a quite cul de sac.

Brady

Sorry to hear about that... sounds terrible. I would imagine with it being a cul de sac under the law the speed limit should be 30 kmph in built up areas specifically for this reason, dogs / kids running around.

helimachoptor

If the dog ran after the car how did he get run over?

andreac

Sorry to say but if your dog was out loose and not under control then the driver is not at fault. He could actually claim off you for damages to his car if he really wanted to.

How do you know he was speeding? Can you prove it?

Sorry to hear about your poor dog but it shouldnt have been out loose on the road.

Brady

Have a look here;

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/categories/travel-and-recreation/roads-and-safety/road_traffic_speed_limits_in_ireland

toadfly

Thats terrible, really sorry to hear it.

I'm not sure about the law but would assume they is a speed limit where ye live?

This happened to us years ago, our dog Jack was killed on the road, the woman that hit him had the cheek to come to our house saying "I hit your dog with my car, he's dead and he broke my light when his head was milled with my car so now you have to pay for the light".

I wasnt long telling her to pi$$ off or I would break her head :mad:

death1234567

andreac wrote: »

Sorry to hear about your poor dog but it shouldnt have been out loose on the road.

This. The dog owner is liable and the driver can claim for damages from them.

toadfly

death1234567 wrote: »

This. The dog owner is liable and the driver can claim for damages from them.

So a child is out on the road, the car hits them, kills them and the parents have to pay to fix the car?

shy

Im no sure of the exact details, there was damage to the front bumper and spot light so I assum dog ran out from the gateway and hit car head on, but driver was doing some speed as it was only a very short distance from were driver started his journey to were he hit dog less than 50feet.

Sorry for use of bad language but still in shock as loved that ole dog.

PCPhoto

pets are not supposed to be allowed loose in the neighbourhood - in fear they will attack postmen/children.

then again..... people in cars are not supposed to speed but proving driver was speeding is another issue.

I doubt you will have any luck - best course of action is a civil action against the driver of the car for the loss of family pet, but apportioning blame is difficult as you can see above ... both parties are guilty - and one would not happen without the other..... dog wouldn't have run after car if he was locked in, car wouldn't have ran over dog if dog was not chasing !!!

easyeason3

Dog owner is liable. Dog should have been restrained on a lead & should not have been out roaming around.

I know your upset but how fast do you think a driver can go in a cul de sac? Was the driver really speeding?

I'm sorry to hear about your dog. It's not a nice thing to happen at all & even though I said above he should have been restrained we all know that dogs will get out at any opportunity. It's an unfortunate situation to be in for the owner & the driver.

Lu Tze

TillyGirl wrote: »

So a child is out on the road, the car hits them, kills them and the parents have to pay to fix the car?

Analogy is flawed. Its an animal. Go the other direction. Farmer leaves gate open on field. Cattle escape, car hits one as it runs out in front of it. Yes, i think the animal's owner is liable.

toadfly

Lu Tze wrote: »

Analogy is flawed. Its an animal. Go the other direction. Farmer leaves gate open on field. Cattle escape, car hits one as it runs out in front of it. Yes, i think the animal's owner is liable.

Yes its an animal but it was still going too fast to be able to stop to avoid killing the animal.

What if it was a child? Are you saying animals arent an important part of a family and because they can buy another one it doesnt matter?

ArseBurger

TillyGirl wrote: »

So a child is out on the road, the car hits them, kills them and the parents have to pay to fix the car?

Well, if you had to have a licence for a child and they weren't allowed out unless on a lead, yes.

shy

Hi

It was a quite country laneway where there are three houses and loads of fields.

Yes I no the dog should have been kept in but he was a fecker for escaping.

Between the three houses there are 6 dogs so the driver shouldnt have been speeding. I will pay for the damage to his car but im hoping that he can be done for speeding or will take half the blame and half the cost.

toadfly

ArseBurger wrote: »

Well, if you had to have a licence for a child and they weren't allowed out unless on a lead, yes.

Bull, he shouldnt have been speeding.

TillyGirl

TillyGirl wrote: »

So a child is out on the road, the car hits them, kills them and the parents have to pay to fix the car?

that's a daft post to be honest, dogs are meant to be under control in public, chasing cars is not under control

shy wrote: »

Im no sure of the exact details, there was damage to the front bumper and spot light so I assum dog ran out from the gateway and hit car head on, but driver was doing some speed as it was only a very short distance from were driver started his journey to were he hit dog less than 50feet.

Sorry for use of bad language but still in shock as loved that ole dog.

You are presuming the driver was speeding, I reckon you should pay for the damage, so does the law.

easyeason3

shy wrote: »

Hi

It was a quite country laneway where there are three houses and loads of fields.

Yes I no the dog should have been kept in but he was a fecker for escaping.

Between the three houses there are 6 dogs so the driver shouldnt have been speeding. I will pay for the damage to his car but im hoping that he can be done for speeding or will take half the blame and half the cost.

So am I right in assuming that the speed limit would be around 80kph?

I am really not trying to be mean here but if there was 66 dogs between the 3 houses it would make no difference legally to the speed the driver does once it's within the set speed limit.
As far as I know he can't be done for speeding as it's the owners fault the dog got out & you don't have any proof he was speeding.
For your own sake pay for the damages done to the car in full but don't rely on his quotation, get one from a panel beater/ garage to make sure your not paying over the odds.

Lu Tze

TillyGirl wrote: »

Yes its an animal but it was still going too fast to be able to stop to avoid killing the animal.

What if it was a child? Are you saying animals arent an important part of a family and because they can buy another one it doesnt matter?

I'm a little sceptical about the speeding, as the OP said he had only travelled 50ft (16 yards?).

If it was a child it would be a tragedy, are you equating the death of a dog ato a childs then? I love dogs, but these are in no way simalar circumstances.

And if it was a child, i would still mostly blame the parent for leaving them running around the road unsupervised.

seamus

TillyGirl wrote: »

Are you saying animals arent an important part of a family and because they can buy another one it doesnt matter?

That's how the law sees it. Irish law in relation to animals comes from the 19th century and bears no relation to modern reality.

morganafay

Sorry about the dog, but I think both people were at fault here, the dog shouldn't have been loose, and the driver shouldn't have been speeding, if he was speeding. If the dog was loose by accident and the driver wasn't speeding, then it was an accident . . .

It's awful that the dog got killed, but a driver could be killed if they crashed trying to avoid a dog, so it works both ways.

shy

he was speeding, neighbours will vouch for that

justsomebloke

TillyGirl wrote: »

Bull, he shouldnt have been speeding.

can you or the OP confirm he was speeding and if so how?

Lu Tze

If it is on a country lane is it not an 80kph speed limit?

easyeason3

shy wrote: »

he was speeding, neighbours will vouch for that

What is the speed limit on the road?

Tow

death1234567 wrote: »

This. The dog owner is liable and the driver can claim for damages from them.

+ 1 That is the law, it is clearcut.

For example, my grandparents dog was killed by a car going out a gate, while the dog was walking along the footpath. There were witnesses who saw it all and said the car was flying. The dog caused £600 of damage to the car, and that was about 20 year ago. They ended up having to pay the lot.

shy

is there any point getting the guards. it was an 08 audi so we fecked it will cost a couple of hundred if not grand to get fixed and we literally have no money.

morganafay

Could you say to the owner of the car that you have witnesses to say he was speeding, and try to get him to forget about it in case he gets in trouble too?

I hate how people drive so fast in the country, when there easily could be a child there than ran out of their garden or something. I know children or dogs shouldn't run onto the road, but there's still no excuse for speeding . . .

easyeason3

shy wrote: »

is there any point getting the guards. it was an 08 audi so we fecked it will cost a couple of hundred if not grand to get fixed and we literally have no money.

I don't think so. They can't do anything about it as (don't mean this in a bad way) you were in the wrong letting the dog out on his own even if he did escape.
I'd contact your solicitor though. Get an agreement drawn up that you agree to pay the damages to fix the car but that no other claim can be made once it's fixed.
Last thing you want is that guy claiming whiplash or something.

Get a quote from a different garage/ panel beater to the one he's using to compare prices.

subway

you have no evidence the car was speeding so your out of luck.
it wont stand up in court so no point getting the gardai.
you can call them to confirm but i think they will say the same thing to you.

if you have it, pet insurance should cover the damage

eddiebarrett

Offer to pay €1 per week for the next thousand weeks:D