Tens of thousands of people have signed a petition calling for a change in the law, which would require drivers to report collisions involving cats. The law currently requires drivers to report hitting certain animals. A collision with either dogs, horses, or sheep must all be reported and the driver is required to stop at the scene. However, a driver who hits a cat is currently not required to report it or even stop.
Around 80,000 dogs and 230,000 cats are hit by cars in Britain every year. Sunderland-based Pawz for Thought has backed a change in the law, saying that it would allow cat owners to get answers about their missing cat “rather than search for months.”
The charity “constantly receive calls from heartbroken owners searching for their missing cats,” operations manager Lorraine Thornton said. “Our pets are part of our family and for some people their only family,” she said.
Since June 2024, cats in England are required to be microchipped and registered on a compliant database from the age of 20 weeks old. The Department of Transport said that microchipping rues make it easier to “reunite cats with their keepers.”
The petition was started by Kellie Watson from Killingworth, North Tyneside who was devastated to learn that her 11-month-old kitten, Martha, had been repeatedly hit by cars before a stranger took her to the vets.
The petition has attracted over 40,000 signatures but the government says it has no plans to amend the existing law above Highway Code advice to report any collision that involves an animal.
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