Good news for the postie: Dog bite laws extended to private property

 
Devil dogs: maulings in the city have soared by 79 per cent in five years
Alamy Images
6 February 2013

Dog attacks on private property will be covered by law, the Government announced today.

The move will be a boost for postmen and women, health visitors and others who call at private addresses but have not been covered by the law if they are bitten by a dog.

Ministers have also announced compulsory microchipping of dogs, with owners being given three years to comply.

Both measures will cover England and follow a consultation last year on issues including dangerous dogs.

Environment Secretary Owen Paterson is expected to say the law will be changed to close a loophole which prevents police from taking action against the owners of dogs that attack people on private property.

It is believed police will be given new authority to decide whether a dog which is subject to court proceedings needs to be kept apart from its owners until the outcome.

Previously, all such dogs had to be kennelled until proceedings had concluded, even if they posed no risk to the public.

Around 110,000 stray dogs are picked up by police, local authorities and animal welfare charities each year, with around half unable to be reunited with their owner because they cannot be identified.

Around 6,000 dogs are put down each year, while strays cost the taxpayer and welfare charities £57 million a year.

Thousands of postal workers and hundreds of telecom engineers are attacked by dogs every year, mainly on private property, such as gardens, drives and private roads.

The law has been changed in Scotland and Northern Ireland, with legislation in the process of being altered in Wales.

More than 6,000 members of the public needed hospital treatment after being attacked by dogs between 2010 and 2011.

Eight children and six adults have been killed in dog attacks since 2005.

The Dogs Trust, which has been campaigning for compulsory microchipping for over a decade, said it would welcome any announcement on the issue from ministers, adding: "This immediate method of identification is essential to improve dog welfare and we believe it will help to reduce the number of dogs that needlessly end up with an uncertain fate in council pounds and rescue centres when their owners simply cannot be traced."

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Mr Paterson said 110,000 dogs were lost a year and microchipping would speed up tracing their owners.

"If a dog commits a dangerous act and is then caught, its owner will be traced. If it is not, has not got a chip, the owner, after 2016, will be in trouble," he said.

"It is another tool which I hope will bear down on this problem.

"It is not an insignificant problem - eight children and six adults have been killed since 2005, which is absolutely shocking.

"Of course we have problems with postal workers - 3,000 postal workers are attacked a year, and some of them quite seriously.

"So it is not going to eliminate the problem, obviously, but I think it is going to be a help."

The RSPCA today gave a cautious welcome to the Government's announcement to make microchipping compulsory for all dogs, but warned more preventative measures were needed to improve animal welfare.

David Bowles, head of public affairs, said: "Compulsory microchipping and extending the law to cover private property as well as public spaces is a welcome move.

"However, on their own we don't believe they will make owners more responsible or ensure fewer dogs bite people or other animals.

"The number of warnings the RSPCA issued to dog owners due to poor welfare last year was up by 12% on 2011, while the number of dog bites that required hospitalisation has gone up by 26% in the past four years.

"If the Government are trying to tackle these, we don't see how compulsory microchipping will help reduce either of these figures."

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