The owners of millions of cats who are not microchipped across the UK could face fines under new legislation.

A new law that comes into effect from today aims to make it easier for lost or stray pet cats to be reunited with their owners as up to 2.2 million cats are still not chipped.

According to Cats Protection research, more than one in four owners (26 per cent) who have failed to microchip said it was because their pet does not venture outdoors, and about one in seven (14 per cent) said their cat was identifiable by its collar.

The charity said it usually costs between £20 and £30 to have a cat microchipped by a vet. Owners found not to have microchipped their pet will have 21 days to have one implanted or face a fine of up to £500.

Head of advocacy, campaigns and government relations for Cats Protection Madison Rogers said: "Some owners think they are never going to go through the trauma of losing their pet cat, but in the last year 115,000 pet cats in England went missing and never returned home. Cats are nimble and extremely agile and can easily slip out without us noticing.

"Many lost cats live a frightening life on the streets. No food, no water, no shelter, no veterinary care and constantly at risk of severe injury or death from many hazards such as cars and wild animals.

"Collars can easily drop off, become damaged so that the address details become unreadable and, if they are not quick release, can become snagged on obstacles like tree branches, causing injuries to the cat.

"A microchip is safe, stays with your cat for its lifetime and is linked to contact details that are stored safely in a database."

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Tina Lewis, from Filey Cat Rescue in Yorkshire told GB News: "It's of major importance we get so many stray cats or very friendly cats handed to us or in trouble out there.

"If we can scan them, we can notify the owner within minutes. All the date is available to us and we can get the owner to us. It would be wonderful if all cats were microchipped they could get home in time for

Cat welfare expert at the RSPC, Alice Potter, said: “We have seen cats coming into our care who are sadly not microchipped and may never be reunited with their owners. On average, 11 per cent of all cats coming into the RSPCA’s care are still not microchipped.

"We’ve also rescued cats who have been microchipped but the details haven’t been kept up to date, which is arguably even more frustrating as it means cats spend a long time in our care whilst we fruitlessly try to contact the owner with out-of-date information.

"However, we’ve also seen countless stories of cats that have been reunited with their owners thanks to a tiny microchip – showing what this change of legislation will achieve for animal welfare."

Tina Lewis added: "You have to remember to register them. Just because you microchip, you do have to register them also.

"Its a minute job but many people forget to do that."