Serious Injury Lawyers Back British Horse Society Campaign

Personal injury specialists at law firm Irwin Mitchell call for greater measures to protect horse riders on the road after it’s reported that drivers don’t take as much care as they should when overtaking.

During the last five years, 2,000 incidents involving horses have been reported to the British Horse Society (BHS), with 36 rider deaths and 181 horses being killed or having to be put down because of their injuries. 

The BHS also say that 75 per cent of reported accidents happened because the vehicle passed a horse without allowing enough space and most commonly, accidents happened on minor roads in rural areas. 

Dead Slow, a campaign by the BHS, is dedicated to raise driver awareness of horses on the road and to encourage riders to wear high visibility clothing. The campaign has begun to target its messaging specifically to drivers with messaging at petrol stations and at the back of buses. 

The seriousness of the issue has been support by MPs, particularly after composer Andrew Lloyd Weber complained of road range near his Hampshire farm, and MP Jake Berry has pushed for overtaking horses to be included in driving tests. 

Along with Mr Berry, MP Liz Saville-Roberts has submitted an Early Day Motion (EDM) asking for Government support and she has gone further to say that it should be made compulsory legislation for horse riders to wear high-visibility clothing when out on the roads.

The recommended advice for drivers from the BHS is to slow down to 15mph when they meet a horse rider on the road. 

Cathryn Godfrey, serious injury expert at Irwin Mitchell’s Leeds office, who is also a keen horse rider, said:

Expert Opinion

“As an avid horse rider myself, I fully support the BHS Dead Slow campaign asking drivers to take into account the rider and the horse when they’re out driving on rural, winding roads. I myself have come to near misses because of drivers not leaving enough room to overtake me.

“I have acted for a number of clients who have been injured due to collisions with vehicles on the roads. The impact of the injuries can be life changing and the rehabilitation and recovery period prolonged due to the physical and psychological impact of the incident.”

“We fully support the BHS Dead Slow campaign and so far, the MP action is promising. However local authorities urgently need to step in to raise awareness of safety on the roads for horse riders and educate drivers before any more accidents happen.” Cathryn Godfrey - Associate Solicitor

If you, or a loved one, has suffered an injury while riding a horse then our personal injury solicitors may be able to help you make a claim. See our Horse Riding Injury Claims page for more information.