In a dog bite lawsuit, you can sue for the amount that compensates you for your losses. This includes your medical expenses, lost income, and pain and suffering. On average, this is around $50,000 for dog bites. If your injuries were extensive, you can sue for more. Several factors will influence how much you end up recovering.
Dog bite lawsuits demand compensation
Dog bite lawsuits are personal injury claims. These lawsuits demand compensation for the losses that you have sustained, also known as your legal damages. The most common and important legal damages that you can suffer in a dog bite case are your:
- medical bills,
- lost wages and earning capacity, and
- pain and suffering.
Your medical bills include those that you have paid already, as well as the costs of medical care that you will need in the future.
Similarly, your lost income includes past and future losses. You can sue for the income that you have already lost while you recovered from the dog attack. You can also sue for the reduced earning capacity that you have sustained due to any disabilities from the bite.
Your pain and suffering includes compensation for your:
- physical pain,
- mental suffering,
- emotional distress, and
- loss of life’s enjoyments.
Your loved ones can also recover compensation for their loss of consortium.
Average dog bite settlement
According to the Insurance Information Institute (III):
The average cost per insurance claim for a dog bite was $58,565 in 2023, down from $64,555 in 2022.[1]
However, several factors can increase this amount or reduce it significantly. Some costs may be deducted from this amount, like the insurance company’s administrative and litigation expenses.
Factors that influence how much you recover
The 4 most important factors that can influence how much you can sue for a dog bite are:
- the extent of your injuries,
- your shared fault for the dog bite,
- your state’s dog bite laws, and
- whether there is enough, or any, insurance coverage.
Your injuries
How badly you were hurt is the most important factor in how much you can recover in a dog bite case. If you were severely hurt and have suffered permanent disabilities, you will likely recover more than if it was only a minor dog bite and you made a full recovery.
Shared fault
If you were partially to blame for the dog bite, you will likely recover less. You may be partially to blame if you:
- provoked the dog,
- were trespassing, or
- ignored signs that the dog was dangerous.
Most states use comparative negligence rules for these situations. The jury in a personal injury trial would assign a percentage of fault to each party in the case. Your recovery would then be reduced by your percentage of fault. In some states, you would recover nothing if you were found to be more than half at-fault.
While this apportionment of fault happens at trial, dog bite settlements aim to predict the jury’s verdict. Evidence that you were partially responsible for the dog attack can reduce any settlement offers that you receive.
Your state’s dog bite laws
State dog bite laws fall into 2 basic types:
- negligence, and
- strict liability.
Some states will only hold the dog owner liable for a dog bite if the owner was negligent. Dog owners are negligent if they know, or should know, that their dog is a danger to other people. The most important sign that a dog has dangerous propensities is if they bit someone before.[2] Because a prior bite is such an important part of holding a dog owner responsible, this is known as the “one bite rule.”
Many state laws, including California’s, hold dog owners strictly liable for dog bites. Even if the owner did everything they could to prevent a dog bite, they can still be made to compensate you for your losses.[3]
Our dog bite lawyers have found that dog bite cases tend to settle more often and for higher amounts in strict liability states. There is less that the defendant or their insurer can do to defend against your claim.
Insurance coverage
If there is no insurance coverage, then it can be very difficult to recover much compensation. You can still sue the dog owner, but they would pay out of their own pocket. They are unlikely to have much. This can leave you drastically undercompensated.
Dog bites are typically covered by the following types of insurance policies:
- homeowner’s insurance,
- renter’s insurance, and/or
- general liability insurance.
If the policy limits are reached, any remaining amount you are owed would have to come from another source. This is often the dog owner. This can also leave you undercompensated if you suffered serious injuries.
Common dog bite injuries
Some common dog bite injuries are:
- cuts and lacerations, which can be life-threatening,
- serious puncture wounds,
- scarring or disfigurements,
- dismemberment, especially fingers,
- broken bones,
- infections,
- torn muscles and other tissues,
- bruises,
- strains and sprains,
- nerve damage, and
- concussions or other traumatic brain injuries (TBIs).
Some of these severe injuries can cause lifelong disabilities, such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They all require costly medical treatment.
Punitive damages are rare in dog bite cases
The dog bite attorneys at our law firm have found that the vast majority of dog bite claims only recover compensatory damages, or those that cover your losses. Occasionally, though, the dog owner’s conduct was particularly reprehensible. In these cases, you can also demand punitive damages. These provide you extra money in order to punish the defendant for what they did.
How dog bite settlements work
In the immediate aftermath of the dog bite incident, you will get the medical attention that you need.
Several days or weeks later, if the dog owner has insurance, an insurance adjuster will make you an initial settlement offer. This offer is designed to seem like a good deal. It often covers the medical bills that you have already accumulated. In reality, it is almost always a lowball offer. If you accept the initial settlement offer, you will receive the money but will give up your right to sue.
You should get the legal advice of a personal injury lawyer before accepting or rejecting a settlement offer.
If you reject the offer, it starts a negotiation process. This can last for months or over a year. As the extent of your injuries becomes apparent, the amount of your legal damages gets clearer. If a fair settlement amount is offered and you accept it, that would end the case. If no fair settlement offer is made and the statute of limitations is approaching, you and your personal injury attorney can sue the owner of the dog and their insurance company. A trial date will be set. Settlement negotiations continue right up to trial. Most cases settle out of court. If yours does not, it would go to trial and the jury’s verdict would resolve the case.
If your case goes all the way to trial, the process of suing over a dog bite can take several years. Most dog bite victims’ personal injury cases settle in several months or a year, though.
Legal Citations:
[1] Insurance Information Institute, “Dog-Related Injury Claim Payouts Hit $1.12 Billion in 2023,” (April 8, 2024).
[2] See Borns v. Voss, 70 P.3d 262 (Wyo. 2003).
[3] See California Civil Code 3342 CIV.
