Labour Propsals to force all dog owners to take out Third Party Insurance

[Undercover-Elsa]

Express.co.uk - Home of the Daily and Sunday Express | UK News :: All dogs to be insured by law

 

A misbegotten proposal that will force thousands of dogs onto the streets, putting the financial strain on responsible owners.

Nice little old ladies with cairn terriers being made to cough up £600 a year for insurance, because of the iresponsibility of a minority-who'll either evade getting insurance or turn their dogs out.

 

Let's hope the RSPCA will vigorously oppose this. It is they, and the other dog charities who'll be left to pick up the pieces in taking in the abandoned dogs - then finding people can't afford the insurance - so rehoming will go down, and euthanasia will increase.

Is it just me or are we getting ever closer to dog disposal bins in the supermarket car parks, where they're put down a slide into a communal cage?

 

Nice one Labour. Rethink this one or you'll never get back in I suspect.

[hightail]

I'm a bit torn over this one. Saw it in my paper but no mention of £600. If that figure is being bandied about by the sensationalists I'd imagine it's the cost of cover for those breeds already requiring such insurance. I've just done a test quote for a 6 year old crossbreed male and it's an extra £9 to include a million quid's worth of third party cover, £134 in total including a 12 month policy for vet fees cover of £1000.

[hightail]

Should add, I agree it will be impossible to enforce. Only have to look at the number of uninsured drivers getting away with it to see that:)

[hightail]

Have now looked at the link you posted. That £600 figure is from petplan and is for their highest level of cover which includes everything, probably on a cover for life policy. There's no way stand-alone TP cover would come in at anything near that.

[Bookworm]

£600, my backside.

 

As a minicab driver, my boss had to pay less than that per year for 3rd party liability to cover the office and all the drivers!

 

But of course, it wouldn't work so well if they were to say it will cost you an extra £10 or £20.

 

Gawd, but I hate the media more and more.

[Undercover-Elsa]

A slightly more balanced view from Dog World:

Dog World - 09 front cover

[hightail]

As always it's enforcement that's the problem. I'd be happy to go back to the dog licence and pitch it at about £20 to include TP cover, but then I also think car tax should include basic TP cover as it did in Australia when I lived there

[honeybee13]

That sounds a good idea, hightail. I arrived in this thread late on, but would agree that third party liability shouldn't cost much.

 

I don't see how this proposal can work and how it could be monitored. I guess many responsible dog owners already have insurance and have chipped their pet, so how is this going to make a difference? I expect it's electioneering again, let's hope they don't implement it.

[Conniff]

More crap from this crap government - you can bet your life that it has nothing at all to do with public safety, someone has thought up another stealth tax for which Gordon Broon is famous.

 

They don't know who has dangerous dogs now, and those with certainly wont be requesting a license.

[hightail]

Presumably they will be relying on all the new council spies. I'll be interested to see the consultation document. Chances are there will be something far more worrying in there, not as obvious a story, being nicely buried by this insurance thing.

[Conniff]

Well you have to remember that all insurance premiums are taxed, including life insurance, so the more they can get people to buy the more revenue they get.

[hightail]

Oh they'll make money out of it, of course they will. This government, instead of dealing with a problem through existing and adequate powers, invents a new law which still doesn't solve anything but generates revenue. I used to think I was a law-abiding citizen. Chances are I'm not nowadays.

[jackieandwayne]

Thank you Elsa for digging out that article - I agree with most of what is suggested actually. And it certainly takes the hype out of it

 

How to spot a dog lover and responsible owner:

 

a) we can handle our dogs because we have learnt properly and earned the dogs trust and respect.

b) we clean up after our dogs because we don't want dog poo on our shoes any more than a non dog lover.

c) we insure our dogs because we want them to be well and to get treatment when they need it. Just so happens that we also consider the non dog lover with legal insurance at the same time.

d) we chip our dogs because it would break our heart if we lost them

e) we exercise our dogs off lead as it should be - they need it. Our dogs will come back to us immediately when called.

f) we do not muzzle our dogs - if we do they cannot sweat properly and exercise is uncomfortable. It also makes a nervous dog feel even more vulnerable. Our dogs would not bite you without very good reason ie., if you attacked us.

g)we understand that dogs, just like humans, fall out with each other sometimes. But unlike humans, dogs settle an argument swiftly, with a show of teeth and much noise. We know not to scream and shout and fuel the fight, but to stay calm and call or remove our dog immediately. And then make sure everyone is calm and ok.

h) we understand that dogs should be on the lead in most places, like the road, shopping centres etc because after all, why would we risk them being run over or lost? Just so happens it also stops them causing a car crash, or god forbid making a child cry.

i) we feel so sad when we see children being taught to fear animals by their hysterical parents - they are causing their children to miss out on something very special, as well as teaching them exactly how to place themselves in danger around animals.

 

So, in spite of all the awful hype, and breed stalking again, if we can get past that, perhaps some good will come out of this - licencing, competency (with allowances for problems like learning), chipping, insurance but above all, real and meaningful punishment for the silly fools who deliberately teach dogs to be weapons.

 

Oh, I feel better now, this subject has been making me very niggly this week!

[Undercover-Elsa]

Glad you got that off your chest

 

Just had another thought..maybe they are chipping the rubbish bins so they can log who disposes of dog food tins/sacks, in order to ID secret dog owners..taking it one step further..will those who also have empty Frontline pippettes and dog hair groomings be logged as responsible?

What they're really looking for is a combination of Chappie tins, cheap booze bottles, rollup dog ends, chewed Nikes and last seasons' hoodies...

[tonixx]

As a staffy owner, i would be willing to take insurance out to cover 3rd party, i have mine chipped and tagged too, BUT its not going to stop the problem, it never will.

 

I dont know what the answer is, Id be more than willing to have my dogs on some sorta register, BUT i would never muzzle my dogs, unless of course they turned nasty, which I cant see happening!

 

Glad to see this applying to ALL dogs tho, not just the bullies, the amount of times my dogs have been yapped at and even attacked by spaniels and JRT's!