What Should I Do if My Pet has Died at the Vet/Stylist?

Our previous blog discussed what you could do if you believe that your pet has been killed/injured intentionally or negligently. The relevant legislation is the Tort (Interference With Goods) Act 1977. Although physical interference need not cause any damage to trigger tortious liability, it does not sound convincing if you argue that ‘you touched my pet so you should be liable’ because the other side can argue that you consented to them touching your pet in the first place, such as when you took your pet to the vet/stylist and handed it over for services.

It is almost certain that you did not expect your pet to die during its time with the vet/stylist in your absence. Here are the steps you can take after discovering your pet died at the vet or grooming services to gather evidence needed:-

1. Contact your pet insurance company;

If you have pet insurance, you should contact them immediately about your pet’s death and see what advice they can offer you depending upon the terms of your policy.

2. Contact places that offer post-mortem services;

If your pet died at the vet, it is not the best idea for the same vet to carry out the post-mortem on your pet as there is a clear conflict of interest.

Despite what is being said to you by your vet/stylist, you need to have evidence setting out the cause of your pet’s death, if you wish to take the matter further. Your pet might have died naturally or because of unnatural causes.

3. Gather the evidence in relation to your ownership and health of your pet;

You need evidence to show that you are the legal owner of your pet, such as the microchip certificate and evidence of you purchasing/adopting your pet.

You also need evidence to show that your pet was perfectly fine/healthy before you took it to the vet/stylist, for example by way of medical reports.

4. Take photographs/videos; and

It is best for you to take photographs/videos of your pet on the date of its death. They may be able to support your case or version of the facts in due course.

5. Write to the vet/stylist for more information.

You will want to know their version of the facts (about what happened on the date of your pet’s death). Depending on the situation, you may want to make a subject access request (about you) and/or ask them for a copy of the CCTV footage recording.

What to do next

Our team specialises in pet disputes. Whether you are the vet/stylist or the owner of the pet, we will be able to advise on your claim. It is however important to note that the level of compensation for most pets will be dwarfed by the legal fees of pursuing the matter to Trial and accordingly you should assess the benefit of pursing the matter against the potential costs at an early stage.