Animals trapped in cars...

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Hey all,

Was just having a discussion with the girlfriend after seeing a story on the news about a dog that died today after being left in a car for four hours with no windows open.

Now, if ever I was in a situation where I saw a dog distressed and trapped in a hot car, I'd smash the window without hesitation and get the poor little guy out of there. And I'm sure most on here would do the same.

The discussion we were having was that obviously that would be criminal damage, and if the owner saw you and reported you to the police, they'd probably charge you and go through the motions with a court case or whatever may happen in that situation. But in this particular situation, with the owner of the animal obviously breaking the law with regards to animal cruelty, would you be let off given the circumstances or would you both in fact be charged with a crime?

It may be a very simple answer and no discussion required, I was just curious!

Thanks
 
Last edited:
Hey all,

Was just having a discussion with the girlfriend after seeing a story on the news about a dog that died today after being left in a car for four hours with no windows open.

Now, if ever I was in a situation where I saw a dog trapped in a hot car, I'd smash the window without hesitation and get the poor little guy out of there. And I'm sure most on here would do the same.

The discussion we were having was that obviously that would be criminal damage, and if the owner saw you and reported you to the police, they'd probably charge you and go through the motions with a court case or whatever may happen in that situation. But in this particular situation, with the owner of the animal obviously breaking the law with regards to animal cruelty, would you be let off given the circumstances or would you both in fact be charged with a crime?

It may be a very simple answer and no discussion required, I was just curious!

Thanks

I would probably phone the police and ask their advice tbh
 
the problem is you wouldn't know how long the owner was going to be or how long the dog had been there. the owner might have just gone round the corner for a pack of fags in the shop.

so yes. if you just saw a dog in a car, put the window through and took the dog. then yes. probably.

however if you watched the owner get on a train or vanish for an hour then sure.
 
The law states: 1. Only a local authority Inspector or a Constable have a power to enter a "premises" for the purpose of assisting an animal that is, or is likely to be, suffering. This is governed under Sections 18 and 19 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

Sec 62(1) AWA 2006 defines "any vehicle" as a "premises".

2. Any member of the public who breaks into a vehicle to assist a suffering dog would not be protected by the powers under the AWA 2006, and would no doubt be subject of an investigation for an offence of Criminal Damage. However, Sec 5(2)(b) Criminal Damage Act 1971, does offer a defence to their actions in that (i) property was in immediate need of protection, and (ii) that the means of protection were reasonable.

For their actions to be reasonable there must be a level of implied consent. For example, "I broke the lock off the water bowser to put out the burning shed." It would be reasonable to assume an implied consent from the owner that they would wish the person to damage a £5 lock to save a £500 shed and it's contents.

It might be argued that it would be reasonable for a person to believe that there was an implied consent from the owner of the car for them to break a car window to save their dog.

The big word here is "reasonable". If a person just breaks a window as there is a dog inside, and the dog is obviously fit and well, then their actions might well be deemed unreasonable, and they would have committed an offence.
 
To be fair you should follow the rule of law first. Phone the authorities, pretty much end of discussion, they are trained, [protected and paid to deal with such issues.
 
[TW]Fox;28252644 said:
No, we established that everyone is an idiot except those on OcUK who would have saved the guys life no bother.

Go on - I obviously didn't read that far in the thread. How does one go about smashing a car window. Just in case I need to rescue a dog.
 
I'd stand in front of the dog and take selfies,
then wander around looking helpless and retarded just like those stupid Americans last week.
 
Hey all,

Was just having a discussion with the girlfriend after seeing a story on the news about a dog that died today after being left in a car for four hours with no windows open.

Now, if ever I was in a situation where I saw a dog distressed and trapped in a hot car, I'd smash the window without hesitation and get the poor little guy out of there. And I'm sure most on here would do the same.

The discussion we were having was that obviously that would be criminal damage, and if the owner saw you and reported you to the police, they'd probably charge you and go through the motions with a court case or whatever may happen in that situation. But in this particular situation, with the owner of the animal obviously breaking the law with regards to animal cruelty, would you be let off given the circumstances or would you both in fact be charged with a crime?

It may be a very simple answer and no discussion required, I was just curious!

Thanks

Depends where it was tbh

If in a car park at a shopping centre I'd get them to make an announcement and if nobody turned up after 10 mins I'd get them to call the fire brigade. Knowing the UK and it's flawed justice system if I smashed the window to rescue a pup I'd get thrown in jail.
 
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