Accident Attorney Bite Dog

 

Dog Bites-An Overview

Cases of dog biting are increasing day by day. As the studies have revealed, each year such incidents increase by about 20%. It is not the family dog that always bites. Stray dogs and dogs of the neighbors are also contributing to these cases in a great way. About 6% of the victims of this dog bite injuries are children.

In America, about 5 million people suffer this injury every year. This is a matter of great concern because the victim of the dog biting has to suffer a lot of injuries, especially on face and the region around it, and it also debars him from doing his routine activities in certain cases. This leads to loss of income, loss of studies, scars on the attacked area of the body that remains there for a long time, sometimes even life. Many times, the dog owner is having dog-bite insurance policy but sometimes, the owner is either not having it or is underinsured if he is having it. What ever may be the case, the victim has to suffer loss as well as injuries. In such a situation, an attorney can definitely help the victim in getting the claim and also the legitimate amount, as insurance companies always try to give the minimum possible compensation. It is very important here to understand that an attorney is a third party, impartial person who minutely observes all the facts and help the victim in getting the right compensation. So if the dog has bitten you and the dog owner is not acceding to the victim’s demand of compensation, it is the attorney who can help the victim out of that situation.

Laws regarding Dog Bites

Different laws are observed in different states pertaining to dog bites. Broadly, these can be categorized under the following: The first one is ‘Strict Liability law’. According to this law, if any dog has bitten any person, the dog owner is liable to be held responsible, irrespective of the fact whether the dog owner was negligent or not or dog had bitten someone earlier also. Thus, it directly holds the owner responsible for the injuries inflicted by the dog upon the victim and has to pay compensation to the victim. The owner cannot prove his innocence about the dangerous behavior of the dog and the state considers the dog as strictly ‘prey’ animal. Examples of such states are Indiana, Georgia etc. The second law pertaining to the dog-bite cases is established on

case-by-case basis. The various states following this type of law are called as one-bite state. Many things are taken into consideration before the dog owner is held responsible in such states. These are: Had the dog bitten someone earlier also and the dog owner knew it at the time of accident, the dog owner is definitely held responsible. If the dog had not bitten anybody before, whether the dog owner has noticed any particular behavior or act of the said dog that might result in dog biting somebody in future. If the dog owner had noticed any such behavior and still he had not taken any steps for that, he is definitely to be held responsible. This particular behavior is really hard to prove and only an attorney can prove it for the benefit of the victim. If the dog owner had no idea about this behavior of the dog , then the dog owner can be held directly responsible only if he has violated any law pertaining to the public safety. An example of this can be leash law which prevents dogs from chasing the persons or running after the trespassers, or there may be other laws also like those preventing the dog owners to take dogs to the day care centers, beauty parlors etc. The states observing such law are Alaska, Mississippi etc. Thus, the rights of the victim vary from state to state. If the victim proves that the dog owner knew that the dog had earlier also bitten somebody, the dog owner is held responsible, irrespective of the state.

The dog owner and the victim

After the dog has bitten the victim, the dog owner will definitely try to prove himself innocent and thus will try to avoid any claim or compensation what so ever. This is a common tendency that has been observed. If the accident has taken place in any strict liability state, the dog owner cannot run away from his liabilities, but if the attack has been made in some other state, then there are various ways in which the dog owner will try to escape and it is in this situation, the victim needs an attorney, to get the right compensation from the dog owner or the insurance company.. Almost all of the attorneys are of the view that the victim, after having bitten by the dog should try to do some important things and these includes the noting down of the name of the dog owner along with his telephone address etc. Apart from this, they should try to make the dog-owner the immediate witness. In case, he denies, every effort should be made to make his neighbor the witness of the dog bite. All the facts should be recorded by the victim, like the description of the dog, how the whole incident happened and why did the dog attacked him, because the dog owner would surely try to prove that the victim had provoked the dog to bite him. If the dog owner succeeds in proving this fact, there is no way in which the victim can get the compensation.

The role of the attorney and the compensation

In fighting the case and going for the compensation, the role of the attorney becomes very important. In some cases, he is the only person who can help the victim in getting the claim and if the dog owner or the insurance company agrees to pay the compensation, he is the person who can help the victim in getting the right amount of the compensation. It is not like that every dog bite case attracts the compensation. It is only in a particular case that the victim can get the compensation. The accident attorney before deciding about the total amount of the claim, takes all the necessary factors into consideration, viz, compensation for the lost wages, physical injuries inflicted, all the future medical costs, and all other expenses associated with the above. Apart from the above, the attorney also acts as a counselor to the victim in clearing all his doubts about the compensation. Before going for the compensation, the attorney finds out whether the insurance of the dog owner has been done or not. In the present time, in most of the cases, the dog owner has the required insurance. The various forms of insurance are Home-owner’s insurance Renter’s insurance Landlord’s insurance Insurance for the employers etc. It is for the welfare of employees only. In case, the dog that has bitten the victim does not pertain to the land-lord but pertains to the renter, even then, the land lord is liable to pay the compensation if the renter is not having the insurance. The attorney makes investigation about the dog’s past behavior and its medical history, contacts the neighbors and the dog’s veterinarian; obtains animal control records, obedience school records and police reports before finally proceeding towards the filing of the claim for the compensation to the victim. Since the dog owners as well as the insurance companies are not sympathetic with the victim, the need for an attorney becomes more demanding. An attorney finds out whether the dog owner is having insurance or not. If the dog owner is having insurance, the attorney finds out the name of the insurance company and the policy owner, the telephone number and the address of the company. He contacts and ascertains whether the victim is going to get the appropriate claim or not. The personal injury lawyer or the accident attorney makes the dog owner personally liable for the losses in case there is no insurance of the dog-owner or it is not adequate to cover the claim. Thus, it can be said that the increasing number of dog bite cases has definitely made the role and need for a personal injury lawyer more important and inevitable. Before ending up, it is advised here that every effort should be made to avoid dog bite cases and if it is not possible, a person can roll himself like a ball near a wall covering his face, neck and region around it with his hands and arms, so that injuries are not inflicted in that area.