Chickens in the road and legal ramifications

[Mrs. K]

The driver is responsible..... I would check before I paid a dime. His insurance should cover it, at worst, it is a road hazard..... out here, people hit wild turkeys and they can cause damage if they come through the windshield. No one is responsible for that. IF they could prove that there was a chronic problem of chickens on the road constantly, then you might be required to secure your chickens, or any other animal, but at least in SD, it is accepted that animals sometimes get out, and the driver is expected to maneuver his/her vehicle to miss them.

But different states have different laws

 

[bobbi-j]

Where I live, the owner of the animal is responsible. We had a pup that got loose one day, got hit by a car and their insurance came after us. Didn't matter that the kid was driving almost 80 mph, and killed my dog. We had to pay. We don't have any open range laws in our state.

 

[LilRedRoo]

The driver is responsible..... I would check before I paid a dime. His insurance should cover it, at worst, it is a road hazard..... out here, people hit wild turkeys and they can cause damage if they come through the windshield. No one is responsible for that. IF they could prove that there was a chronic problem of chickens on the road constantly, then you might be required to secure your chickens, or any other animal, but at least in SD, it is accepted that animals sometimes get out, and the driver is expected to maneuver his/her vehicle to miss them.

But different states have different laws

That's how it is in rural areas of Texas too (most parts...certain cities have ordinances that address the issue differently). I can understand if you live in a neighborhood and you've got livestock milling around the culdesac, but when you live "in the country" it's expected that you realize that you're living "in the country." Obviously neighborly courtesy is expected as well. Folks know to keep the fences in good repair, and very few people's livestock are actually ever out in the roadways. Neighbors generally share the cost/labor of border fences too, especially if they both have catlle.

 

[SouthDakotan]

In my area the DRIVERS are responsible for being careful. 2ndly make them PROVE the damage came from your bird... and not from Some PREVIOUS road kill moment! If a chicken did that, what then would happen to them if they hit a pheasant? How do you know they didn't previously hit other things... say a CURB! I'm guessing a judge would NOT be pleased that they took his or her time over it either!

Request their car's accident history... that might scare the blizzard out of them! You'd have the right to know how many OTHER accidents they've had with that vehicle! Also their driving record.

Insurance companies are always trying to make someone else pay! But if they can't prove the damage came from your bird... then they have a problem.

 

[Mrs. K]

Hey SouthDakotan from another SD girl!

 

[The Lazy L]

...Yesterday, the chickens came through the carport and hit the road. There is a tree dropping berries in the road and the silly chickens are scratching in the road for them. A car hit and killed one of the chickens, came back several hours later saying the chicken had damaged their bumper and they wanted us to pay for it. They came back today with an estimate for $500....

....Yesterday I was at an OB appointment when the chicken was hit....

I'm confused.

You was at an OB appointment when the chicken died so you are assuming:

1. The chicken escaped your fence in yard by walking thru the carport?
2. The chicken was eating tree berries in the roadway?
3. And that the Driver was speeding?

And the only way you know how the chicken died is when they Driver present you with a $500 bill?

 

[Coralietg]

I'm confused.

You was at an OB appointment when the chicken died so you are assuming:

1. The chicken escaped your fence in yard by walking thru the carport?
2. The chicken was eating tree berries in the roadway?
3. And that the Driver was speeding?

And the only way you know how the chicken died is when they Driver present you with a $500 bill?

My partner was at home. He heard the hit, went out a few minutes later and moved the dead chicken out of the road. The driver came back a few hours later.
The only way the chickens can get to the road is through the car port. The front yard is all fenced against the road. We have clipped their wings and confined them to a run for now. I know they were eating squashed berries as I had to get some chickens out of the road the previous day. My assumption that the driver was speeding is based on that I have seen her speeding before, and if she was driving 20mph, a 3-4lb chicken should not have cracked her bumper.