While dogs are considered as a family for many people, these pets can sometimes be dangerous to other individuals. Unfortunately, being bitten by a dog can be unexpected, frightening, and serious. Worse still, the injuries can even be painful.
Dog bites can be common, though few people take the legal process to get compensation for their injuries. This legal process may seem overwhelming but thankfully you can hire a dog bite lawyer Phoenix AZ to work on your behalf. This post explains what you should know about a dog bite claim.
A dog bite claim
Sadly, many people experience dog bites each year, but when a dog bites you, you can be entitled to compensation. All you need to do is to file a legal claim to get compensation for the dog bite injuries. These claims come when you are bitten or injured by a dog. Here is the deal: when someone’s dog bites and injures you, the dog owner can be held liable for the actions of their dog.
However, the laws that apply to dog bites can vary from state to state. This is the reason why you need to be familiar with the laws related to dog bites in the area you live in. The best way to have a successful legal claim is by speaking to your dog bite attorney.
Filing a dog bite claim
As mentioned above, you need to provide the specifics that caused a dog bite to prove liability depending on the state you live or where the incident happened. But a dog bite liability can sometimes be proved by showing that the dog owner was negligent. Below is how a dog bite attorney can help you to prove liability:
Negligence
In most cases, your lawyer may need to prove that the dog’s owner may have breached their duty of care. However, your dog bite attorney may need to work hard to prove this breach of care that caused your injuries. This can arise due to failure to properly manage a dog or failing to take the right precautions to keep their dog away from people when they know that it’s aggressive.
One bite rule
Some states have a one-bite rule that leads to the liability of the dog’s owner. Ideally, this rule states that the owner may have known that their dog is aggressive and has the potential to bite a person or has a bite history. With this rule, it asks you whether the dog’s owner should have known or knew their dog was a threat to someone.
Strict liability
Some states have a strict liability which means that a dog’s owner is liable once a specific condition is met. It doesn’t matter what the dog’s owner did or didn’t do for the incident to happen. So, a dog owner can be found liable if their dog bit you when you were at a place where you are legally allowed to be.
Comments 1
It’s interesting to know that it’s important to also consider the angle of negligence when planning to hire a dog bite attorney. I’d like to help out my neighbor with that because he was recently bitten by a dog. It would be best to start figuring out whose dog that was.