A virtual reality film released by the British Horse Society aims to cut the number of road accidents involving horses and riders.

The Petplan Charitable Trust donated £25,000 to fund the film which is part of BHS’s Dead Slow campaign. The Dead Slow campaign was launched in March 2016 to coincide with release of the Horse Accidents statistics from the past 6 years. This showed that 181 horses and 36 riders had been killed on the roads and there had been 2,000 incidents involving horses and vehicles. Of these incidents, 80% were caused because drivers passed too fast, too close or a combination of both.

The Dead Slow campaign has 4 clear messages:

• When you see a horse on the road slow down to a maximum of 15 miles per hour
• Do not rev your engine or sound your horn
• When safe to do so, pass the horse wide, at least a cars width, and slowly
• Drive slowly away

In 2018 the British Horse Society’s Dead Slow Virtual Reality film was launched to improve awareness of the campaign.

“Thanks to the Petplan Charitable Trust’s generous support we were able to produce the Dead Slow Virtual Reality film. It has made an incredible difference for drivers to understand what it is like to be on a horse when a car passes too fast or too close,” says Alan Hiscox, Director of Safety.

“After seeing the film 94% of drivers realised they must slow down to a maximum of 15 mph, when passing horses making it safer for both riders and drivers.”

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