Horse Passport Regulations

Quality Bailiffs Check the Horse Passports of fly-grazing horses in Surrey

Quality Bailiffs work with local authorities to check horse passports of fly-grazing horses.

Background

Fly grazing horses are a major issue for many local authorities. In this case Quality Bailiffs were asked to check the passports of a number of horses in surrey that were at different sites.

The horses were continually fly grazing on council and private property. The horses were moved to another location close by just in time before the equine bailiff removal team to arrive.

The law that we used to carry out the checks was the Horse Passports Regulations. This law has been in force since 2009.

The Horse Passports Regulations Act 2009

Responsibility for enforcing this law is with the local authorities.

The local authority is able to carry out inquiries in relation to a suspected case of fly grazing or breaches in passports of horses. They have the authority to demand to see a horse passport.

• The local authority has the right to demand access to open land, buildings or vehicles to check horse passports and related documentation.
• Entry must be requested at a reasonable time of day. This applies unless the property is used as a dwelling.
• The owner of the documentation must allow the local authority to remove said documents so that they can then be copied. This is the case whether the documents are stored in paper or electronic format. The documents would then be returned.
• The local authority can mark the horse for identification purposes.
• If the documents on the premises are not clearly legitimate or correct the local authority can take the documents to make sure of their validity.

If a person is unable to produce the required documents for inspection they can face a fine of up to £5,000.

The Task

Our equine bailiff team was instructed to assist with checking horse passports of a number of horses fly grazing at a number of sites. We discussed this with the local authority and the Police to determine the best approach to what was expected to be a difficult situation.

The operation targeted three problem areas within the district. The result was 15 horses were found to be without a passport. These offences were dealt with on a case by case basis.

A bonus resulting from the operation was that the issue of fly grazing horses was significantly reduced for the entire district.

We can help

If you have issues with fly grazing horses our specialist equine bailiff team can help you. Read more about the service here.

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