Resolving Pet Microchip Ownership Disputes
When two people claim the same pet, the chip record is only part of the picture. This article disputes are settled, what counts as evidence, and the steps that protect your position.
Someone else says your pet is theirs, and you need to know where you stand. The microchip record alone won't settle it - but the wider evidence will, and sometimes a court.
What the law says about who owns a pet
The microchipping regulations deal with keepers, not owners. In England, the keeper is defined as the person the animal normally lives with, and the regulations don't mention who "owns" the animal.
For the wider question of ownership, the government's Pet Theft Taskforce said the Theft Act 1968 "treats pets as a type of property" although they are "valued as something more than just property". If you believe the pet was stolen from you rather than kept by someone you know, that's a matter for the police.
In March 2024 the government announced reforms to the microchip system. One was a 28-day window for the current keeper to object to a transfer of keepership, to stop stolen pets being re-registered.
How a court decides who keeps the pet
The UK Centre for Animal Law (A-Law) say UK law "does not clearly provide" for how a court will decide who the rightful owner is. A judge weighs all the evidence, and no one factor or piece of evidence settles it. You'll find a list of factors that will be considered in an ownership dispute in Pet Database's proof of ownership guide.
If it does reach court, these disputes are commonly heard in the small claims court. A court can order the animal's return along with damages for wrongful retention. An application can also be made for a declaration of ownership under the Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977. Under section 3 of that Act, the court can order the animal to be delivered up, with damages, or order the person holding it to pay its value instead.
A-Law's guidance applies to England and Wales. The 1977 Act extends to Northern Ireland but not to Scotland.
Sorting it out without a court hearing
Mediation is possible if both parties agree. If you're on speaking terms with the other person, a neutral mediator can help you reach an arrangement you both accept.
Any disagreement about who should be the registered keeper is a civil matter, to be resolved directly between the parties or through independent advice.
Then make sure the chip record follows the agreement, so it ends up in the name of whoever the pet lives with. Pet Database's guide to moving a pet's microchip record to a new keeper explains how that works.
If you and a partner separate
In England and Northern Ireland, for a couple who lived together with the pet, one of them taking it at or after the split isn't the pet abduction offence. Couples can set out plans for a pet in a cohabitation or pre-nuptial agreement, which is worth considering if you're getting a pet together.
Keeping the paperwork and the record in your name
You might be taking on a pet from a friend, a breeder or a rescue, or you might be the one whose claim is challenged. Either way, it helps to keep the paperwork in your name: the purchase or adoption papers, bills, microchip registration, contracts and insurance, with evidence of the care you provide.
When your address or phone number changes, update your details on the database. Pet Database's guide to changing the details on your pet's chip record walks you through it.
However the dispute lands, the record needs to end up in the name of the person your pet lives with. Once the agreement is clear, you can move it into your name.
