Landowner fined £15,000 after public attacked by cows
Following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Sir Charles Hobhouse, a Wiltshire landowner, has plead guilty to breaching section 3(2) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 - failing to ensure that risks to members of the public were controlled.
During summer 2021, members of the public were attacked by cows in two separate incidents on Mr Hobhouse’s land, whilst following public footpaths.
The first incident resulted in serious injuries, including a fractured shoulder and broken ribs. Mr Hobhouse was formally instructed to implement controls to prevent anything similar from happening again.
However, only a few weeks later, a second member of the public, also using public footpaths across Mr Hobhouse’s land, was attacked by cows, resulting in concussion, dislocated shoulders, broken ribs and broken vertebrae.
Mr Hobhouse pleaded guilty in May 2023 and was fined £15,000 and ordered to pay costs of £8,000.
Cow attacks are not uncommon in the UK and whilst rare, the HSE has said that there are on average four or five fatalities in the UK every year, with that figure reaching 11 between 2020 and 2021.
Landowners are encouraged to review their statutory health and safety obligations and ensure appropriate measures are always in place where livestock are likely to come into contact with members of the public. In particular, care should be taken in reviewing any public footpaths that cross your land and ensuring that only appropriate livestock are placed in or near those areas. Dog walkers are always encouraged to keep their dogs on leads when walking in the countryside.
Related expertise
You may be interested in...
Online Event - Shared Insights
Shared Insights: Duty of Candour
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ - Maternity services
University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust invest in telemetry to improve maternity care and patient experience in labour
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
The new Mental Health Bill 2025: A closer look at its key provisions
Opinion - Shared Insights
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ submits recommendations and proposals to the government for England’s 10 Year Health Plan
Opinion
Empowering your workforce: Key tips on adjustments for new starters
Opinion
Duty of candour and patient safety incidents: Proposed amendments to CQC Regulations
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ - Maternity services
MNSI annual report 2023/24: Key insights and future ambitions for maternity safety
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
Breaking the glass ceiling: Empowering female leadership in the food and drink sector
Opinion - Maternity services
Enhancing care for women with ectopic pregnancies: Insights from MBRRACE-UK
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
ABC pilot: Improving maternity safety to prevent brain injuries in childbirth
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ - Maternity services
DISCERN study published: How to improve discussions with families when things go wrong in maternity care
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
Organisational approaches to ESG and sustainability matters
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
Navigating new advertising restrictions on junk food
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
PFAS: The issue that won’t go away
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
CQC publish National review of maternity services in England
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
Relying on parental consent for treatment and restraint against a child's wishes
Published Article
Hybrid working: The right to flexible working and how to make it work for public sector employers
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
Implementing green leases: Enhancing sustainability in NHS properties
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
Product Safety and Metrology Bill: E-bike and e-scooter fires
Opinion
What does the right to switch off mean for employers?
Guide
Rebuilding trust and community: A guide for schools after the recent UK riots
Opinion - Maternity services
New Government plans for NHS maternity services: What can we expect?
Opinion
New proactive duty to prevent sexual harassment: is your organisation ready?
Press Release
King’s Speech 2024: Reaction from °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ lawyers
Opinion
Settling future claims: Insights from Clifford v IBM 2024
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
Tobacco and snus use – are insurers asking the right questions?
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
General election: What a new government could mean for employment law
Opinion - Maternity services
The power of parental touch for babies undergoing painful procedures
On-Demand - Shared Insights
Shared Insights Data: Strategies for handling cyber attacks and data breaches
°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê×ÊÁÏ
ICO consultation on accessing care records: A legal perspective
Opinion
Regulator warning on future dangers of asbestos
Opinion
What’s lurking in your garden? The UK’s most dangerous and invasive plants
Opinion
Landowner fined £15,000 after public attacked by cows
Opinion
Directors fined for unsafe removal of asbestos
Two directors of a construction company were fined after failing to ensure the safe removal of asbestos from a plot of land. On 14 and 15 November 2021, Directors Anthony Sumner and Neil Brown, of Waterbarn Limited were involved in the uncontrolled removal of asbestos material from a plot of land in Grasscroft, Oldham.
Opinion
Don't look down
An engineering company in Tyne and Wear was fined £20,000 after a worker fractured his pelvis and suffered internal injuries after falling through a petrol station forecourt canopy, whilst he was replacing the guttering.
Opinion
NHS England – Assuring and supporting complex change
NHS England has issued an updated (publication 11 October 2022) suite of Complex Change guidance about how it will assure and support proposals for complex change that are reportable to it. New and (where it is still in force) existing Complex Change guidance are as follows.
Opinion
HSE inspection of asbestos in schools
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) have announced they will be carrying out a programme of inspections to primary and secondary school establishments from September 2022. The inspections will assess how schools are managing the risks from asbestos and meeting the Duty to Manage requirements, set out in Regulation 4 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012.
Opinion
Is it hot in here, or is it just me?
Whilst the weather conditions are predicted to be cooling down this week, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is asking employers and businesses to consider adapting to recurrent warmer weather conditions for the safety and benefit of their staff. It asks employers to ensure that extreme heat becomes a firm part of longer term risk management. Climate change in any event is something all businesses will need to consider as the warmer weather becomes more frequent - extreme heat is something that will impact employers on a day to day basis.
Published Article
RAAC planks and its impact on local authorities
Recent reports of flat roofs constructed using RAAC planks collapsing without warning prompted the SCOSS alert.
