Seattle personal injury attorney Chris Davis, is regarded as one of the best dog bite and animal attack lawyers in Washington state. You can learn more about Mr. Davis and his law firm by visiting http://www.DavisLawGroupSeattle.com.
Private Insurance
Oftentimes the dog owner has a homeowner?s insurance policy. Most homeowner?s policies will provide coverage for damages or injuries inflicted by the owner?s dog. However, most coverage questions are dictated by the terms of the insurance policy. And many times you cannot get access to the dog owner?s insurance policy until you actually file a lawsuit against the owner. Thus, a lawsuit may be necessary just to find out if there is an insurance policy, and if so, whether that policy will provide coverage to pay a settlement or verdict.
In addition to homeowner?s coverage, there is also renter?s coverage. A renter?s insurance policy is designed to protect those people who rent their home or apartment. Many renter?s insurance policies also provide coverage for dog bites. Most homeowner?s and renter?s policies that do provide coverage for animal bites usually will provide coverage of at least $100,000 or more. This means that the carrier will pay up to the maximum coverage allowed under the policy to someone who has been injured or harmed by the policyholder?s dog.
At present however, there are some insurance companies that have refused to provide coverage for dog bite attacks, or have refused to provide coverage for certain breeds of dogs, like Rottweilers, chow chows, Presa Canarios, and pit bull mixes. These insurance companies have alleged that certain breeds are more responsible for the claims that are filed by victims, and as a result have attempted to limit their exposure to claim payouts. Those dog owners who purchase homeowner?s and renter?s insurance should carefully read the policy to make sure what limitations of coverage actually do exist for injuries inflicted by their dogs.
Insurance coverage may also exist for a dog bite incident under an umbrella policy. Umbrella insurance is designed to give an added layer of protection above and beyond the limits of a homeowner?s policy. An umbrella policy can add an extra one to five million dollars in liability coverage. This protection is designed to ?kick in? when the liability coverage on other current policies (like a homeowner?s policy) has been exhausted.
As stated earlier, you may not even know whether the dog owner has insurance and if so, whether the carrier will actually offer coverage. Sometimes the only option available is to file a lawsuit against the dog owner so that this information can be produced during the discovery process. In that situation the dog bite victim is wise to hire an attorney immediately so proper steps can be taken to analyze insurance coverage limits and defenses to coverage that the carrier may assert.
- Related Videos
- Related Articles
- Ask / Related Q&A
- Warning: Don't Let Your Child be a Dog Bite Victim-use These Helpful Tips
- Dog Bite Cases and Private Insurance of the Dog Owner
- Don't Let Your Dog Bite Your Homeowner's Insurance
- Dogs Bites Upon Children on the Rise
- How to Make a Claim in Virginia for Injuries Due to a Dog Bite-part I
- Personal Injury Claims Involving Dog Bites & Other Animal Injuries
- San Diego, Orange County and Palm Springs California Personal Injury Attorney Discusses Dog Bites to Children and Endangered Gray Wolves
- California Dog Bites - Seeking Legal Representation
A Spare Bedroom Could Bring You a Nice Profit
By: Stirling Gardner | 26/12/2009With the country the way it is, many individuals are choosing to convert extra space into a rentable apartment, be it a bedroom, an office, a basement or an loft. So, how might you as a property owner, attract anyone to rent your dwelling? Having anyone sign a lease agreement with you might bring you extra revenue and give a tenant a quality place to reside.
New MLM Company Lists
By: Jesse Miller | 26/12/2009Putting together a list of the best multi-level marketing companies is easy enough, but the difficult part is finding the right ones that fit your needs. You need to put together a list of MLM companies that are the best fit to what you need from an MLM scheme, what products you believe in, and what strategies you can use to best sell those products.
Where Can I Find Police Records Online To Lookup Peoples Criminal Past
By: James Nash | 26/12/2009In order to find someone’s criminal past you had to deal with regulations and fees, well not anymore. You see, you can easily access police records on the internet and save your precious money and time that way.
Can I Locate Arrest Records Online To Retrieve Peoples Past
By: James Nash | 26/12/2009When you’re hiring someone new to work with you must make sure that this person doesn’t have a criminal record of any kind because it can damage your company’s reputation. Therefore, you need to check arrest records of your employees, and the simplest and fastest way to do it is to do it online.
Professional Translation Services: Removing the Language Barrier between You and Your Clients
By: Robin Richard | 26/12/2009One of the striking features of the twenty-first century market economy is the open global market. And a product of globalization is multinational companies whose offices are dotted across the globe. Operating in a globalized market means businesses have to deal with the issues of language gap and communication barriers. You may have come to terms with customers, clients, and partners whose language you cannot comprehend.
A Career in Human Resources
By: Louise G | 26/12/2009For those who are looking to pursue a career in human resource and are trying to go about finding a job there are a few different routes you can take to ensure that you will get employment. Here is a look at some of the ways you can go about finding the perfect human resource job for you
Power Aggregators: Securing the Most Favorable Power Purchase Rates for You
By: Robin Richard | 26/12/2009The energy market in the state was officially deregulated in January 2002. Since then consumers in Texas have been enjoying the freedom to choose their energy suppliers. But this freedom has to be exercised most judiciously. Currently there are over hundred power retailers in the state and making a decision on which one you should choose as your service provider is rather difficult. Sometimes the process of choosing a power supplier is not only complex but also a risky. You may be confronted wit
How to Get Paid Twice For Your Work
By: Paul Hoyt | 26/12/2009In an ideal world virtually everyone would build a business...at least if they're interested in getting paid twice for their hard work. For a number of reasons building a business is a good decision. Three are the most obvious and popular. Of those, two, namely making more money and having...
Another Dog Attack - 9 month-old Baby Severely Maimed
By: Christopher Davis | 12/09/2009 | BusinessSeattle Attorney Chris Davis reports on a recent tragedy wherein a 9 month-old baby was maimed by her grandmother's dog.
Dog Bite Cases and the Contingency Fee
By: Christopher Davis | 11/09/2009 | BusinessContingency fees can sound scary when hiring a lawyer, but they're actually designed to make litigation less of a financial burden for victims. Seattle Lawyer Chris Davis discusses the ramifications of this concept in the following article.
Dog Bite Cases and Private Insurance of the Dog Owner
By: Christopher Davis | 10/09/2009 | BusinessIn personal injury cases involving a dog bite, the insurance coverage of the dog's owner is a very important. In this article, Seattle Attorney Chris Davis explains the various insurance policies and actions often taken by insurance companies in cases involving an animal attack.
Medical Mistakes: The leading cause of accidental deaths in America
By: Christopher Davis | 02/09/2009 | BusinessIn this post, Seattle wrongful death lawyer Chris Davis talks about the number of accidental deaths that arise out of medical malpractice each year.
What a Good Lawyer Can Do For You
By: Christopher Davis | 27/08/2009 | BusinessSeattle personal injury lawyer Chris Davis lists a few of the things a good lawyer can do for you.
Insurance Company Discovers Client
By: Christopher Davis | 22/08/2009 | BusinessOne of Chris Davis' recent clients suffered a significant blow in his case against an insurance company when the adjuster found videos and pictures of him engaging in strenuous physical activity on his social media sites MySpace & Facebook. After seeing the videos and pictures, the insurance adjuster devalued his settlement some $20,000.
The Legal Process For Dog Bite Cases - Commencing a Lawsuit
By: Christopher Davis | 17/08/2009 | BusinessSeattle personal injury lawyer Chris Davis discusses the legal process for taking a dog bite case to court. Here he covers the timeline for commencing a lawsuit.
Things to Consider Before Hiring a Lawyer in a Dog Bite Case
By: Christopher Davis | 16/08/2009 | BusinessSeattle Attorney Chris Davis discusses a few of the important things to consider before hiring a lawyer in a Dog Bite case.