Zagreb - Amendments to the Hunting Act guarantee farmers compensation for damage caused by game, although the amount may be reduced in certain circumstances, Agriculture Minister David Vlajčić said on Wednesday. Opposition MPs argued that the legislation was insensitive to farmers and drivers.
Presenting the amendments to parliament, Vlajčić said hunting rights holders would remain liable for damage when the legal conditions were met.
Under the proposed changes, compensation could be adjusted to reflect the circumstances of the damage and the injured party’s contribution, including failure to take protective measures. The role of counties and the City of Zagreb in preventing damage would also be clarified.
Drivers liable for wildlife collisions if traffic rules breached
From 2018 to September 2026, 41,579 cases of damage caused by wildlife collisions with vehicles were reported, with almost €53 million paid in compensation, including €15 million last year, Vlajčić said. Annual claims rose from 1,650 in 2018 to 7,150 in 2025, a more than fourfold increase.
Under the proposed law, drivers would be liable if they breached traffic rules, ignored warning signs or disobeyed explicit instructions. Hunting rights holders would be liable if the damage resulted from a group hunt. If neither party was found responsible, each would bear its own losses.
Other changes include doubling the minimum area of private hunting grounds from 500 to 1,000 hectares, bringing it into line with the general minimum for state and joint hunting grounds, and extending hunting rights leases in state and joint hunting grounds from 10 to 20 years.
Opposition: Bill fails farmers and drivers; HDZ: Liability not being shifted to farmers
Opposition MPs said the amendments were largely cosmetic and failed to address pressing problems facing farmers, citizens and nature protection.
Mate Vukušić (SDP) said the bill addressed the interests of hunting rights holders and the state budget rather than farmers whose crops were destroyed by wild boar or drivers whose cars were damaged by deer. He warned that the burden of proof would remain on those seeking compensation, with farmers potentially losing their entire claim if they could not prove they had protected their fields. Drivers would also have to prove that a group hunt was taking place to claim compensation from hunting rights holders, despite lacking access to hunting records.
Anteo Milos (IDS) called for answers on who was responsible for handling dead or injured game, the review of hunting management plans and how responsible drivers and small farmers would obtain fair compensation. He cited 946 wildlife-vehicle collisions recorded in Istria County last year, nearly three a day.
Goran Kaniški of the ruling HDZ said the law did not transfer responsibility to farmers or require them to take every conceivable protective measure. He added that hunters should not be held liable for traffic accidents simply because game appeared on a road, and that liability should depend on an omission or action that caused the damage.