Police have backed down in a row over whether a driver who ran over a stray dog should pay for its treatment.

Dog-lover Tina Wormald, of Wibsey, was horrified to receive a bill for £682 more than three months after she knocked the dog down.

Mrs Wormald, 38, contacted the Telegraph & Argus about the bumper vet's bill for treating the injured Staffordshire bull terrier, which she had to pay within 30 days.

She claimed the dog had run in front of her car on Halifax Road on August 1, and she could not avoid hitting it.

The bill, from Sage Veterinary Practice in Low Moor, ran to more than £1,700.

Mrs Wormald refused to pay and sent a strongly-worded letter to the police finance department three weeks ago.

When she did not receive a reply she rang the department. "I eventually rang them because I had not had a reply and I was told they would drop the invoice," she said.

"This was because they couldn't prove I was driving recklessly when I knocked the dog down. I am very pleased, but I was never going to pay it. It was a ridiculous thing to do in the first place.

"But if I had not gone to the T&A with the story, I don't think they would have dropped the bill."

Mrs Wormald was told that police would be investigating why the bill was so large.

As an animal-lover, she was concerned that her experience might put people off stopping after an accident involving animals. But she added that her story was unusual because police could not trace the dog's owner.

The terrier has since recovered from his broken leg and now has a new home.

A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said: "We have spoken to her, stating that this was an error and apologising for the invoice being raised.

"Police will be making further inquiries in relation to why the bill was so large."