However, this amount may be higher or lower, depending on your state and the circumstances of your case. Depending on the specific situation, an insurance company typically pays a legal claim resulting from an animal bite injury, with a few exceptions. However, some states have enacted race-specific laws, and some insurers limit the breeds covered as part of a homeowners policy. In most cases, an animal owner’s insurance policy will cover liability for dog bites (and injuries caused by other common pets) that occur on the owner’s property.
When the victim prepares to file an insurance claim, they must use the above-mentioned documentation as a basis. Some insurers do not ask what breed a dog you own when drafting or renewing homeowners insurance and do not track the breed of dogs involved in dog bite incidents. Often, both auto and homeowners insurance policies cover an animal bite that occurred in a car (or possibly in a car, if the animal is in the back of a van). There are also certain insurance companies that refuse to cover specific breeds of dogs, such as pit bulls or rottweilers.
While some insurers will cover your home and any dog bite regardless of the type of dog you have, other insurers won’t. That means that if a dog under your care bites someone and you are found liable in court, your insurer will pay the victim’s medical bills and any legal expenses you may end up with, up to the limits of your policy. If you are underinsured, contact your insurance agent or provider and seek to increase your liability coverage. Even if the owner of an animal does not have insurance that covers animal bites, you have the right to file a lawsuit against the owner to recover their damages.
If they are not or are unsure, they should contact their insurance agent and ask about liability protection options. When this happens, both insurance companies often argue that the other company is responsible for covering the loss. However, owners can be included in personal injury lawsuits if the dog owner does not have enough liability insurance to cover the damages or if the owner is found to be negligent. With regard to insurance, at least two states, Pennsylvania and Michigan, have laws that prohibit insurers from canceling or denying coverage to owners of particular dog breeds on some policies.
The 25-page report questions what groups cite as discriminatory impacts of the insurance industry’s use of dog breed lists to deny homeowners and renters insurance coverage and renewals, create policy exclusions, and limit coverage.