What to Do If You're Bitten by a Dog at Work

Obviously, go to the hospital. Rabies shots are in order according to all the leading health experts. 

Either my private investigator or even some clients do this on their own, but this is what is needed in order to have a dog bite to stick: 

1. Where did the dog come from? If the dog has a collar, grab the info. If the dog doesn’t have a collar, the city most likely will impound the dog and scan for any tags. That’s where the owner’s info will be if there is any. 

   
   

2. If the dog did escape an owner’s yard or a kennel, that claim is called “Failure to Contain” (or sometimes “Failure to Confine” depending on the jurisdiction). I now do not need to prove that this dog has bitten someone else in the past or had tendencies to bite people (which can be hard to prove sometimes). 

   
   

3. If you are visiting a friend’s home and you are bitten by your friend’s dog, I have to prove that the dog has bitten someone else before or had dangerous tendencies. One of those is a dangerous breed like pit bulls (I don’t make the rules. The Texas Supreme Court defines dangerous breeds, not me). This is called the “Dangerous dog” claim.

   
   

Getting Paid: Who Is Responsible and How Do I Obtain Recovery for My Clients in Dog Bite Cases

This is where it gets tricky, and if you want to get into the weeds a little bit — buckle up. Homeowners’ insurance does cover these types of injuries. They will pay in a failure-to-contain claim and a dangerous dog claim as well.

NOW! Insurance companies are getting more creative and are not covering some of these bites. I’m starting to see dangerous dog breed exclusions — meaning if the friend’s dog is a pit bull (as defined by the Texas Supreme Court), then the insurance coverage will not apply.

Also, if you are at an apartment and get bitten, the renter’s insurance most likely will not cover any dog bites at all. I always double-check this to verify, but that’s what I’ve seen.

Navigating these coverage issues is what I do. I literally had a client come to me saying, “Hey, I got bit three months ago, but an attorney friend of mine told me not to bother.” I told him, “It doesn’t cost anything for me to try — just my time,” which I was happy to give.

I looked to see if there was coverage at the property owner’s address and there was! We were able to get a recovery for him. All he did was ask.