Van kills cow on road - who's liable for damage to the van

Van kills cow on road - who's liable for damage to the van

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Discussion

BIGDAI

Original Poster:

403 posts

210 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
On the way to work this morning (rural, fairly fast A road) & drove past a seriously smashed up Transit van parked up on one side of the road and a very dead-looking cow on the other side. Fairly obvious from the location that the cow had escaped from the nearby field. Police were in attendance & were talking to the van driver so didn't bother stopping.
However, it made me wonder who would be liable for the van damage? Van driver's insurance as he had collided with another object or is liability with the farmer for (I assume) allowing his animal to stray onto the road?

TallbutBuxomly

12,254 posts

215 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
The cow undoubtedly. Clearly it thought you were going to moove over.

cotney

554 posts

170 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
Can't help you with this one unfortunately, I have never herd of this happening before.

db

724 posts

168 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
The liability would be with the van's insurers, they can argue the case with the farmer's insurers.

The van must have been totalled if it killed a cow. My brother wrote a car off hitting a sheep, the sheep walked away

BertBert

18,954 posts

210 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
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going to have to ruminate on that for a while

Some Gump

12,671 posts

185 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
That's udderly rediculous? How is i the animals fault if a transit T bones it at full pelt? The van driver trying to blame a beast is just milking the situation, it's his own fault for hoofing along too quickly for the road conditions, leathering into it. Naturally, the rest of us will take it in the rump if this practice carries on due to increased insurance premiums.

jhfozzy

1,345 posts

189 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
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I'm udderly speechless he wrote a van off after hitting a cow. Deserves a pat on the back.

ETA: The winner ^^^

Grenoble

50,289 posts

154 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
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Any chickens involved?

We could then suspect fowl play!

Vvroom

1,170 posts

189 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
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Tough one legally.

Google Mirvahedy v Henley, but there was a lower court decision in Livingstone v Armstrong which involved a cow hit by a car- a lot like in OPs example. The Animals Act 1971 is poorly drafted and inconsistently interpreted. The farmer's liability is not at all clear cut.

I'll have a think about a Moo joke and try to post something less boring next time.


Rick101

6,959 posts

149 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
Train hits cow on railway.....Farmer gets big payout.

The railway fencing is the infrastructure maintainers responsibility so if it fails and livestock gets onto the railway, and subsequently damaged, the maintainer pays out.

It's amazing how much fencing became damaged during the foot and mouth eperdemic.

Xerstead

618 posts

177 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
I'll bet his NCD is at steak. I suppose the insurers could claim his story is a load of bull. The insurers will probably be settle 50:50 and meat half way. The press will have a field day.

Vvroom

1,170 posts

189 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
Xerstead said:
I'll bet his NCD is at steak. .
Brilliant

silverfoxcc

7,683 posts

144 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
It depends on whether the cow used its horn. Or ir could be the udder guys fault. Still its not my beef. Perhaps if the weather had be freisan, there could have been a tail back.

Ki3r

7,806 posts

158 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
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This is why I love PH!

daz3210

5,000 posts

239 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
Vvroom said:
Xerstead said:
I'll bet his NCD is at steak. .
Brilliant
NCD or CJD?


DeolTheBeast

449 posts

145 months

Wednesday 3rd October 2012
quotequote all
TallbutBuxomly said:
The cow undoubtedly. Clearly it thought you were going to moove over.
biggrin

supraboy

285 posts

183 months

Thursday 4th October 2012
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Haha just reminding me of max and paddy!

Grab its hoofs, not its tits! You'll be covered in milk man! Lol

Funk

26,254 posts

208 months

Thursday 4th October 2012
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OP, when it comes to insurance wrangles, these things are never black-and-white.

TallbutBuxomly

12,254 posts

215 months

Thursday 4th October 2012
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All jokes aside op sorry to hear about this. My father was killed when he hit a cow in the dark at nsl speeds in south Africa. In our family's case it turned out the fencing on his property was damaged and not been repaired and he was held fully liable.

cannot see why it would be any different here. The cow is his responsibility and liability.

R0G

4,984 posts

154 months

Thursday 4th October 2012
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I think it would depend what happened

Cow in road and van hit it = van fault for not stopping in time

Cow ran out in front of van = cow/farmer fault