As we head towards summer and the weather gets warmer, we expect to see more people getting back to riding their horses more regularly on the Isle of Wight.
Police are urging motorists to remember to PASS WIDE AND SLOW when encountering a horse on the road.
The British Horse Society (BHS) has a web page with dedicated advice to drivers around this topic.
Some of the key points to remember when you come across a horse in the road are:
- Slow down to a maximum of 10mph
- Be patient – don’t sound your horn or rev your engine
- Pass the horse wide and slow – at least two metres
- Drive slowly away
If horse riders need to report an incident to police and have Go-Pro footage, you can report this within 7 days of the incident occurring via ‘Hants Snap’.
Free-roaming animals
Feral or semi-feral ponies found in areas such as the New Forest require the same consideration as ridden horses when approaching or passing.
In the event of a collision with a free-roaming animal in the road, it’s important to stop your vehicle, check on the animal if safe to do so, identify your location and call the police.
It is worth downloading the What3Words app on your phone to help you identify exactly where you are – this information can then be passed to a police call handler to help track you down.
Failing to report a collision with an animal is an offence under Section 170(8) of the Road Traffic Act 1988.
The animals captured within this piece of legislation are horse, cattle, ass, mule, sheep, pig, goat and dog.
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