Powys is Wales' number one blackspot for road incidents involving horses, a new survey has shown.

The British Horse Society (BHS) is urging drivers to "humanise" horse riders after a 234 per cent rise in incidents across Wales, with the most incidents taking place in Powys.

In Powys, there were 34 incidents on the roads – more than anywhere else in Wales, with Carmarthenshire in second place with 32.

Road incidents involving horses and vehicles continue to rise across the UK, with a total 2,943 incidents reported to the equine charity in 2021.

Alan Hiscox, Director of Safety at The British Horse Society said: “The number of incidents involving horses on Britain’s roads remain far too high. It is, therefore, vital that we continue to urge drivers to be more considerate when passing horses and aware of how to do this safely.

“We need to push awareness of this, and believe the ‘Look Out for Laura’ campaign offers a powerful message that will encourage drivers to think about the riders around them and help to reduce the significant number of horses being killed on Britain’s roads.”

To raise awareness of this issue the BHS has started its “Look out for Laura” campaign to make drivers more aware of the dangers surrounding horses on the road.

The campaign has been informed by research carried out by Nottingham Trent University, in collaboration with the BHS and Cycling UK, with funding from The Road Safety Trust, who are dedicated to achieving zero deaths and serious injuries on UK roads.

The BHS is asking drivers to adhere to the Dead slow campaign which was launched to help better educate drivers on how to safely pass horses.

The group advises drivers who see horses on the road to:

  1. Slow down to a maximum of 10mph
  2. Be patient – not to sound the horn or rev the engine
  3. Pass the horse wide and slow, if safe to do so, at least a car’s width if possible
  4. Drive slowly away