Driving With Unrestrained Pet Could Lead to £5,000 Fine, Invalid Insurance

Driving with an unbuckled pet can result in invalidated insurance policies or hefty fines, according to the highway code.

Letting unrestrained pets into the front area of the car can violate the rules of the highway code and can lead to risking penalty points, or insurance companies can decide to take away your coverage, the Sun reported.

Pets are required to be restrained at all times while in a vehicle. Having unrestrained pets in a vehicle can lead to distracted drivers or risks of accidents. 

Allowing unrestrained pets to ride with you could be deemed “driving without due care” and could result in detrimental ramifications, according to Express. 

Insurers can end coverage agreements for having unrestrained pets roam freely in a vehicle.

“When you’re travelling with your dog you might be tempted to let your pet ride upfront with you to keep you company,” Greg Wilson, a car insurance expert at QuoteZone, told Express. “But doing so would breach the highway code and also runs the risk of penalty points if you’re deemed to be ‘driving without due care and attention.’”

According to the highway code, pets should be kept in a pet carrier or cage, or in the rear seat, harnessed with a seat belt.

Unrestrained pets in the car can not only result in car insurance termination, but drivers can be penalised or fined for not properly securing pets.

Driving with unrestricted pets can be considered deliberately driving without due care, so fines of up to £2,500 are possible, according to the Wakefiled Express. Moreover, violating the highway code can cause drivers to be issued up to nine penalty points for driving with unrestrained pets.

Another possible penalty is a temporary driving ban.

Confused.com has conducted research that says 24% of pet owners plan to take their pets on a staycation this year. However, 37% of drivers were not planning on restraining their pets during travel.

According to the research, 27% of drivers intend to allow their pets to roam free in the car.

Another 35% of drivers did not know driving with unrestrained pets can violate the highway code and invalidate car insurance policies, while 18% of the research participants reported they have been fined or received penalty points for driving with an unrestrained pet.

And 14% of drivers said their unrestrained pets caused an accident or nearly caused an accident.

According to highway code rule 57, pets should be properly restrained to avoid distractions. Also, if the vehicle stops quickly, injuries to the occupants of the car or the animal could happen.

Rule 57 continues by saying seat belt harnesses, cages, or pet carriers should be used for safety reasons. 

To keep you and your pet safe, a seat belt harness costing around £7 can eliminate the possibility of fines or accidents, according to the Sun. There are seat belt harnesses available for purchase to restrain dogs of all sizes comfortably. 

“It’s perfectly normal to want to take your four-legged friend with you when you’re going away,” Halfords pet travel expert David Howells told the Sun.

“Driving with them is sometimes a necessity, so making sure they are safe and restrained is essential for their safety and health.

“Like their human counterparts, many dogs can suffer from car sickness and can spook easily, so make sure you help keep them and yourself safe by belting them up in the car when driving.

“If you don’t do this and your dog roams free around the vehicle, then an insurance company might also not pay out on a claim.”

Do you drive with your pet? Did you know about the unrestrained pets rule? Let us know in the comments.

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