Some people in Kentucky have dogs as companions, and others have dogs for occupational reasons. The dog may provide security or help to protect livestock on a farm. There are even dogs that are trained to provide medical support to people with disabling medical conditions.
Regardless of why someone owns a dog, they need to make sure that they train the dog so that it behaves in a safe manner around people. They also generally need to keep the dog away from members of the public. Typically, this means erecting a fence around their property when appropriate and putting the dog on a leash whenever they are out in public with it.
Unfortunately, not everyone with a canine companion makes smart choices about how they handle that animal. Who ends up paying for the property damage costs, injuries and lost wages created when a dog becomes aggressive?
Kentucky has strict liability laws
The possibility of an animal becoming aggressive is well known, and therefore animal owners should be proactive about ensuring the safety of others. State law makes an animal’s owner directly responsible for any damages the animal causes.
The only real exception to that rule is that the animal acted because of direct provocation by a person or to protect its owner from criminal activity. Otherwise, the person who owns a dog is responsible for the expenses generated when that animal attacks a human.
Of course, typically the dog’s owner won’t directly write a check to the person bitten. Instead, lawsuits related to dog bite cases typically result in insurance payouts. Both homeowner’s insurance and renter’s insurance can sometimes cover dog bite injuries.
If a dog’s owner does not have an insurance policy with appropriate premises liability coverage, then they may end up personally responsible for the damages caused by their animals. Even if someone has health insurance and paid leave at work, they should not have to use their own resources to offset the consequences of an aggressive animal attacking them. The animal’s owner should help reimburse them for lost wages and pay the expenses generated by the attack.
Learning more about dog bite laws and other premises liability rules can benefit those who have been injured in a recent animal attack. Seeking legal guidance can also be very helpful.