If My Horse is Hit by a Car, Could I be Held Liable for Damages to the Car?

Q: A woman was boarding her horse at a friend’s place and the horse escaped and got hit by a car (yikes!) The owner of the car is threatening to sue her for damages to the car. What does the law say regarding things like this? Is there a possibility she might have to pay for the car since it was her horse?

A: Most commercial boarding facilities have “care, custody, or control” insurance that covers incidents such as this. The first thing to do is ask the owner of the boarding facility if they have such insurance. Let's assume the incident was in Texas. If the horse was hit on a state or interstate highway, both the owner of the horse and the owner of the boarding facility may be found liable for criminal penalties under the Texas Ag Code (Class C Misdemeanor), IF the police can prove either of them knowingly allowed the horse to roam freely on the road. The driver of the car could also sue the horse owner under a general negligence theory for damages. This is even if the county is open range (see below).

If the horse was hit on a farm-to-market road, the boarder can still be held liable in negligence for damages but cannot be held criminally liable because it is not a violation of criminal law (Ag Code) to allow a horse to roam at large on a farm-to-market road.

The best case scenario would be if the boarder's horse was in a county that is still open range (i.e. has not adopted the “stock law”). If her county is open range, her horse had the right to roam freely (assuming it was not on a state or interstate highway). It is fairly difficult to determine whether or not your county is open range. You have to call the sheriff or county clerk and see if they can figure it out. Nobody has compiled a list of this information because it’s in the commissioner’s court minutes, usually from the 30’s and 40’s, and is very difficult to search.

Alison wrote a blog entry that is somewhat on point as well:
http://equinelaw.alisonrowe.com/2008/05/articles/livestock-laws/is-a-horseowner-liable-for-damages-if-a-horse-gets-loose/