Are robot mowers safe around children and pets?

They're designed to be much safer than a conventional mower, but they are still machines with sharp blades, and every manual says not to leave children or pets unsupervised near one while it's running.

The safety features are fairly standard across the market:

• Small blades under the body. Most mowers use small pivoting razor blades on a disc set well inside the shell, and the blades fold back if they hit something hard.
• Lift and tilt sensors that stop the blades within a moment if the mower is picked up or tipped.
• Bump sensors that stop or turn the mower on contact.
• A PIN or child lock so it can't be started by pressing buttons.
• Obstacle detection by camera, LiDAR or ultrasonic sensors on many newer models, which aims to steer round objects before touching them.

The weak points are small hands and paws reaching under the edge of a moving mower, and small animals that don't move out of the way. Obstacle detection claims are the manufacturer's and refer to objects such as toys, shoes and pets; they aren't a guarantee.

The simplest safeguard is the schedule. Set the mower to run when the garden isn't being used, such as weekday mornings while the children are at school, and pause it from the app when they're playing outside. Teach children that the mower isn't a toy, and pick up toys and dog balls before a session. For wildlife, keep to daylight hours; see our hedgehog guide.