My dog bit someone on sidewalk while on leash

[legal_eagle]

Originally Posted by hoodun

This is my conclusion as well.


At the time my dog had about 8 people waiting in line to pet her. She was wagging her tail and licking them when they first came over. I am usually very good about keeping a hawk eye on things. I was just on an important phone call at the time so I was not paying as close as attention and everything seemed fine. the girl kept saying she had witnesses and video. I asked to talk to a witness and got no response.

The first thing out of my mouth to the girl was, I dont believe you... I was standing right next to the dog and even though I was not paying 100% attention I would know if she attacked someone. She always gives several warnings such as barking, ears back, etc when she is feeling uncomfortable.

It seemed like the girl could have scratched her chin, though that seems like such a drastic measure. I'm not sure what to believe. the girls behavior was very strange. she kept asking me what I was going to do about it and she would not leave... she just sat across from at a table on the sidewalk. It got to the point where I was like do you want my information, do you want to call the cops, ... I really just wanted the girl to either brush it off or take action and leave. She was drilling me with what seemed like some sort of psychological game... maybe she was expecting cash from me. ... I'm leaning towards a scam. Wow.

so now my questino is if I tell me they DO NOT have permission to pet the dog, am I relieved of liability? If I understand 'strict liability' the one case it does not hold is in trespassing...

So how did it end?

[dragontales]

Hello,

I don't have much to offer in regards to this as being a scam or not. But I do have some advice to pass along based on personal experience. Long story short, we are dog owners and were involved in a dog biting incident. The entire ordeal was handled by our home insurance company but the episode was super stressful because the case (claim) lasted for over a year. My insurance company and I sat around for a whole year waiting for their attorney's demand letter with the exact amount of damages they were seeking. The part that stressed me out was the waiting period and not know if they wanted a few thousand dollars or few hundred thousand dollars, or even a million. If what they wanted was over my coverage amount then I'm sh*t out of luck and have to pay out of pocket. I was afraid of potential bankruptcy or financial ruins. These thoughts hung over me for a very long time. At the very end they demanded a sum that my insurance company was ready and willingly to pay out just to close the claim. To say I was relieved is an understatement. Even though the case finally closed, the fallout for me was that the insurance company decided to drop me as a customer due to high risk (dog owner). I had to find another company that was willing to insure me but at a much high cost annually, and any future dog biting incidents will not be covered whatsoever.

I thought I was going to make it short but it just kept going. Here are a few things I recommend.

*Take dog bite(s) very seriously because it could lead to huge financial ramifications.
*Document and note all time, date, place, and incident.
*Document the victim (or scammer) and witness name and address if they were willing to offer it.
*Have your dog's shots records ready.
*Immediately report it to your insurance company so they are prepared if the other side plans to file a claim.
*Forward all letters and emails to your insurance company.
*Double check how much your coverage is.
*If they file a claim, you will feel stressed because it's like a dark cloud over your head.
*Relieve the stress by doing exercise.

And finally:

Kiss and hug your little doggies.