Dear Sir/Madam

In New South Wales, unlike Queensland, there are cases where the owner of property adjoining a highway was found to be negligent in permitting an animal to stray from its property onto the highway. Gregory’s (Properties) Pty Ltd v Muir (1993) 17 MVR 86, Brown v Toohey (1994) 35 NSWLR 417.

This, however, still does not mean that the owner of cow will be found to be negligent. You must prove that the owner breached his or her duty of care (i.e. the owner did not do everything that he/she could prevent the cow from straying on road).

Hi there. In NSW, the laws relating to liability for wandering livestock on public roads are not clear cut. Based on the information you provided, you may have a claim for negligence against the cattle owner, but a lot will depend on the specific circumstances of the case.

To successfully sue for negligence, several key elements must be proven. You would need to prove: that the cattle owner owed you, as a road user, a duty of care; that the cattle owner breached that duty by failing to stop his cattle from wandering onto the road; and that the owner’s breach of duty caused you physical and/or mental harm. The law of negligence is particularly complex and not every type of personal injury will result in a successful claim for compensation. Many factors need to be considered, including the foreseeability of the accident, the reasonableness of taking steps to avoid the accident, and the injured person’s behaviour at the time of the accident. A personal injury lawyer can assess these factors to determine the strength of your claim.

In 2016, a NSW court awarded compensation to a driver who was injured in a road accident partly caused by cows that had wandered onto a highway. The owner of the cows had failed to maintain an adequate fence on his property that bordered the highway, despite the local council ordering him to fix the fence. The court found that the cattle owner had been negligent and was therefore liable to pay compensation to the injured driver.

It is common for farmers to take out public liability insurance that ordinarily covers incidents caused by wandering cattle. The cattle owner in your situation may be insured for this type of event, so it may be worth pursuing the claim.

Suggested way forward

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