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(EMAILWIRE.COM, July 16, 2008 ) Saint Louis, MO. Dogs bite an estimated five million Americans annually. When a dog attack occurs, insurance issues are commonly a topic of dispute. This is because several different insurance providers may be examined in determining liability, and compensation is generally provided through insurance companies. Insurance companies involved in dog bite claims range from insurance providers of landlords and employers, as well as homeowners and homeowner associations to human society providers and automobile insurers.
In a recent Missouri dog bite lawsuit, insurance issues became the main subject of dispute. In this case, the dog bite victim won a judgment against a dog owner and the trailer park court where the accident occurred. Both of the claims were for negligence and the dog bite victim was to be compensated for $75,000. However, the dog owner did not have funds to compensate the victim and did not have insurance either.
Generally, homeowners insurance and renters insurance provide at least some coverage for dog attacks; however certain breeds may not be covered and all incidents and costs will not necessarily be covered either. If you are a dog owner, it is important to make sure that your homeowner or renter insurance policy has such coverage.
Without such coverage the dog owner will likely have to pay out-of-pocket costs, or the victim will be left without remedy for the injuries sustained, as in the case above. After realizing the dog owner would be unable to pay, the victim sought other means to secure the monies owed through the trailer parks commercial general liability insurance policy. The victim filed under this policy because the dog owner was also a real estate manager of the trailer park.
Even though the dog owner resided on the trailer park property and was a manager at the trailer park, the court ultimately found that the trailer parkÂ’s commercial policy did not cover the victimÂ’s dog attack.
This is because the general liability policy only provided coverage for employees while in the course of employment. The court held that simply establishing that the dog owner was a real estate manager was insufficient to bring that person under the coverage of the general liability policy because the dog owner was not acting as real estate manager when the dog attack occurred.
The injured dog bite victim appealed, but the case was affirmed; the court said that the dog bite did not arise from any actions of the dog owner as manager for the trailer park and therefore didnÂ’t fall within the parkÂ’s insurance policy. Meaning, it is likely this victim may not see the money owed for the dog bite injuries due to the lack of means to secure it.
This case exemplifies one of the many complexities of a dog bite lawsuit. Dog attacks are often even more difficult to deal with as legal claims because dog owners and bite victims sometimes have close relationships as neighbors and friends, and dog bite victims are frequently children.
A knowledgeable and skilled dog bite attorney who has previously dealt with similar situations will be able to resolve your dog bite lawsuit as quickly and easily as possible. John Page, a partner of Missouri personal injury firm Page//Cagle, is dedicated to aggressively representing those injured in dog attacks and can be directly contacted through an online contact form at http://www.dogbiteclaim.com/consultation.php.
Page || Cagle is located at 1232 Washington Ave., Suite 220, St. Louis, MO 63103. John can be reached by calling 314.322.8515 or toll free at 1.800.500.4658. Email john@pagecagle.com.
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