Domestic Animals - Local authority by-laws stipulate that a dog must be kept confined and, if off the property, must be on a lead. If a domestic pet habitually roams the neighbourhood without restraint, and it runs in front of your car causing an accident, you may have recourse against the pet owner for negligence. However if the pet is usually kept restrained and on one occasion it accidentally escapes from the owner’s yard, then it may be difficult to prove negligence against the owner.
Cattle straying on the roads - At the present time Queensland still adopts the Common Law which states that an animal has right of way over a vehicle on the roadway. This stems from the old rural environment in England where it was traditional for animals to have right of way. This has been reversed in legislation for certain instances by Council or Shire by-laws. The by-laws vary according to the area in which they operate and often differentiate between farm and domestic animals. In areas where the road passes through open range the Common Law applies.
Civil actions against the owner of an animal being struck on the road rely on showing that the owner was negligent in the maintenance of fences or other ways in which the animal was restrained to the property and not allowed to roam on the road. Civil action against the driver of a vehicle which collides with an animal by its owner must show negligence in the manner in which the vehicle was driven.
In some other states there is legislation that controls the movement of animals on all roads and in relation to straying animals which sets the lines of liability, but this is not the case yet in Queensland.
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