Bees and the law

[victor meldrew]

Codswallop!!!! The only law that is relevant is the Roman one that says any swarm on your land belongs to you!
Louise

If so explain the practice of tanging!

John Wilkinon

 

[dudley]

This was discussed at length in a thread by Joseph on 24th June 2010, 10:59 PM

 

[greatbritishhoney]

Thanks Dudley. I did originally do a search but didn't find that thread.

One thing that is interesting about that thread (and this one), is that there is very little certainty among beekeepers (even experienced ones) about what the law actually is in relation to some of these questions.
There may well be quite a few old / roman laws that relate to bees that are technically still on the statute books but would almost certainly be superseded by more modern laws in certain circumstances.
For example, the roman law may state that a swarm still belong to you even when it leaves your hive but there will almost certainly be issues about proof of ownership etc. Also, if the swarm remains your property and you don't turn up to collect it pronto then the local authority would surely be within it's rights to charge you for any action it has to take to deal with it and any disruption it causes.

The reason I asked the original question was simply out of curiosity, but it has certainly given me food for thought particularly in relation to PLI - if the legal situation is so unclear then insurance is an absolute must for all beeks.

 

[djg]

And if Insurance is a must, there's a cheap and simple way to obtain it : the BBKA Capitation Fee, as part of my local Association subscription is very inexpensive. For £16/year, full Membership - for active beekeepers with hives - includes:

Public Liability Insurance (cover up to £5m)
Product Liability Insurance (cover up to £2m)
BBKA News
Bee Disease Insurance
Membership of LBKA

Another good reason to join your local Association, I would say !

 

[greatbritishhoney]

And if Insurance is a must, there's a cheap and simple way to obtain it : the BBKA Capitation Fee, as part of my local Association subscription is very inexpensive. For £16/year, full Membership - for active beekeepers with hives - includes:

Public Liability Insurance (cover up to £5m)
Product Liability Insurance (cover up to £2m)
BBKA News
Bee Disease Insurance
Membership of LBKA

Another good reason to join your local Association, I would say !