Wild ponies cause £1,200 worth of damage by licking car
Wild ponies in Dartmoor have reportedly caused £1,200 worth of damage to a car — by licking its paintwork.
The unsuspecting driver parked his car in Dartmoor National Park to embark on a hike around the moors.
When he returned to the car park later that day he found that 12 ponies were licking the vehicle.
News of the ponies’ antics has caused a stir on Twitter.
“Having just bought a new car and about to move to Devon for a while, I’ll make sure my car tastes yuck,” said Malcolm Oakley.
“There are ponies on Dartmoor that actually eat cars,” added another user.
It seems the ponies’ behaviour was not a one off, as Dartmoor Search and Rescue Team said that two of their volunteer’s cars has been “chewed” by ponies.
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The group’s rescue vehicle Dart52 “had also been a victim”.
Insurance claims
The bizarre incident came to light through analysis of Saga car insurance claims.
The ponies were among other animals that caused £1 million of damage to vehicles last year.
Saga handled around 500 car insurance claims involving animals.
Earlier this year a cow caused £800 worth of damage to a parked vehicle, also insured by Saga, after breaking loose at a cattle show.
Another Saga customer was on his way to a boat yard when they spotted a low flying duck. The driver swerved to miss the duck and drove into a stone bridge, causing more than £1,500 worth of damage.
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Rachael joined Horse & Hound in 2014, initially as a digital sub editor then became part of the news team as a writer in 2015. The philosophy graduate studied journalism at the Press Association before working as a local reporter at the Brentwood Gazette. Rachael is now a mum of two and still loves all things equestrian, including hacking, dressage and jumping with her cob Bert. Rachael left the H&H staff to go freelance in June 2019, but still contributes to our magazine and website, as well as our sister magazine Country Life, among others.