BMW driver fined for killing spooked pony 'after it jumped onto the car bonnet'

06 April 2023 , 17:24

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Oliver Heywood was driving his BMW SUV at an 'inappropriate speed' in the New Forest when he ploughed into four-year-old pony Juma (Image: bbc.co.uk/)

A speeding BMW driver has been fined £1,600 for killing a beloved pony.

Oliver Heywood was driving his BMW SUV at an 'inappropriate speed' in the New Forest when he ploughed into four-year-old pony Juma, who became spooked before tragically dying from its injuries.

The 26-year-old was banned from driving, with his carelessness sparking a petition which gained 74,000 signatures.

Heywood - who was driving with his one-year-old daughter in the back - appeared at Southampton Magistrates' Court, where he was disqualified from driving for six months and fined after being found guilty of driving without due care and attention.

Heywood, of Woodgreen, near Fordingbridge, Hants, told the court something must have 'spooked' the pony, and that he had been adhering to the 40mph speed limit in his BMW X4.

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Following the heartbreaking loss of her pony, commoner Sarah West set up a petition for speed cameras across the New Forest after Juma's death on Roger Penny Way - a road notorious for animal deaths.

Commoner Sarah Weston said she was grief-stricken by the loss of her pony (bbc.co.uk/)

PC Dan Channer, the officer in the case for the investigation, said: "This incident shows the devastating effects of travelling at inappropriate speeds on our Forest roads.

"Whilst an animal has lost its life, the consequences could have been graver - there could have been a loss of human life too.

"The gravity of the fine handed down by the judge, coinciding with a driving ban, sends out a strong message.

"Drivers who see the Forest's wild animals must be mindful, react and slow down to give plenty of time and space.

"They do not have road sense and the Highway Code gives them implicit right of way. It is our duty as road users to afford them safe passage by driving carefully and considerately when in the Forest.

"Speed limits are put in place for a reason - and it is exactly that, a limit - not a target. Ponies, horses and other wild animals cross New Forest roads day and night and it is well sign-posted in these high-risk areas."

The latest figures show the total number of animals killed, injured and destroyed following New Forest road accidents has fallen to a 30-year low, although of the 41 animals killed in 2022, 34 were ponies.

Abigail O'Leary