Neighbours cat scratching my car

missjay12

So the other morning i noticed my car bonnet was covered in cat hair, its clear that one has been sleeping on my car. Yesterday i noticed very deep scratches on the bonnet and also light ones. It looks like the cat has fell and clawed the car numerous times. Im really annoyed by it because its a brand new car and I've only had it 3 months i try my best to keep it in good condition. Does anyone have the laws on this or now where i can find the laws about cats damaging your property please? Also what can I do to keep them away as its only going to get worse. Although I dont feel i should be paying for this or the repairs of the damage either. I'm in the process of getting evidence from the CCTV to prove its the neighbors cat. I've seen a few posts with people saying oh get over it its just a car so if you feel that way don't post on here please. Yes it is a car but its a very expensive car that i worked hard for why should the neighbors cats be able to damage it and get away with it and i have to foot the bill for!?
Any help or tips really appreciated because its really annoying me right now.
Thanks

Lily-Rose_3

You can't control cats. They are free spirits.

Maybe get some kind of 'cover' for your car?

It may not necessarily be the cats doing all the damage to your car either.

mellymoo74

Cats arent property so nope legally nothing you can do. Also without proof morally nothing you should do.

You can get covers, we tried covering our car but A2's are a odd shape and they dont fit.

fairy_lights

Assuming the scratches were done by a cat, how can you know which cat it was? Unless you've caught your neighbours cat red-pawed with his claws out on your bonnet, it could be any animal in your neighbourhood.

System

missjay12 wrote: »

Yesterday i noticed very deep scratches on the bonnet and also light ones. It looks like the cat has fell and clawed the car numerous times.
Any help or tips really appreciated because its really annoying me right now.
Thanks

I just wondered where the cat had fallen from....do cats generally like scratching shiny surfaces? I only ask because ours definitely doesn't; he enjoys a surface that 'resists' his claws, so sharpening them.

On another tack, in our area we get a fair number of buzzards; my family live in an area on the outskirts of a big town, so not even rural, where red kites are very common (Berkshire, Oxfordshire). These birds often get into disputes with domestic animals (cats, mostly) and wild animals like foxes, when the ensuing fight ends up in quite a scrap (they fight talons first, after all). We find the 'results' of such predation (back ends of rabbits) and damage to said Mog including really nasty gashes and scratches, which the vet confirmed were probably the result of a fight with a predator, possibly avian. A plunging buzzard or kite would leave possible deep claw marks if catching prey, and may also possibly leave marks on a vehicle if the prey tries to escape over/ under it...

It's another possibility.

dandelionclock30

Leave orange peel over the bonnet or lemon peel. No cat will come anywhere near your car.

catkins

I really can't imagine a cat scratching a car. I have had quite a few cats over the years and a few of them have liked sitting on the roof of cars (usually our car but occasionally a neighbours). One liked sliding down the bonnet of our MG and would leave fur on the soft top and paw prints on the bonnet but never scratches

ljonski

could have been a cat fight on the car!

fizz

OP-You are surely having a laugh! You say that you are in the 'process' of getting evidence from CCTV that it is the cat/cats (not really clear) of the neighbour? Well you have either caught them on camera or not.

You have deep scratches and light scratches-sounds more like a brillo pad and a keying to me rather than a cat. Cats need something to stick their claws into-cars don't do it-too slippery and sleek.

Perhaps as others have said you could put a cover over your car (but at 3 months old it's dropped about 20% already) or you could put it in the garage if you have one?

Thanks for the giggle.

fizz.x

KxMx

I think the replies are a little harsh; I can see a cat falling asleep on a car, sliding off the car then digging in claws to save themselves, or being startled enough while sitting there to dig in.

Not much OP under law that you can do. If you have evidence you could speak to the cat's owner but they won't be obliged legally to do anything.

It sounds like a one off incident anyway TBH if it is true.

Shrike

It could be some of the lighter scratches are from the cat's rear paws - those claws stay out all the time, but are quite blunt. Unlikely a cat would use its front claws on a shiny hard surface. I suspect the scatches are from stuff like grit, twigs and other detritus hitting the car at speed. Though a cover would be a good idea if you really want to keep the car nice, bird droppings can be quite acidic in autumn when they've been eating fruit and later its useful for keeping frost off.