Horse Sense (public information film)
Horse Sense is a British public information film produced by the British Horse Society (BHS) in conjunction with the Department for Transport's Think! campaign, to highlight the risks of drivers failing to pay proper attention to people who use the road for horse riding. The film was shown during 2003 and 2004 with a brief re-run in early 2009. Despite the effectiveness of the campaign, the film was restricted to airing on television in a late night slot and its impact relied on being played on the internet. Now the film is often used to promote the BHS Riding and Road Safety Test and is regularly shown to candidates at the start of their test.
The film shows a mother riding her horse and her daughter riding her pony on an open countryside road. Both the riders and the horses are wearing adequate safety clothing. A driver in a Ford car drives down the same stretch of road and comes across the horses. The driver refuses to leave enough space between their car and the horses, uses their car horn and revving of the engine to attract attention and finally attempts to pass in a narrow space without warning. Whereas the young girl is able to continue to ride her pony calmly without getting distracted, the driver's actions frighten the mother's horse, causing him to misbehave and refuse to respond to his rider's instructions. Eventually, the horse gets extremely distressed and rears up in front of the car. The film ends with a still image of the scared horse reflected on a broken windshield, suggesting that the car hit the horse and left him and his rider seriously injured.