It can be a bit confusing for people to figure out what type of insurance covers dog bite claims. It isn’t something covered by pet insurance. It might seem odd to consider filing a claim to a homeowners policy, especially if the dog bite didn’t take place at your home. What about if your dog is sitting in the back of your truck, and bites someone? Which insurance covers that?
It is never a good situation when your dog bites someone. There is potential that your dog believed that he or she was protecting you, or another member of your family, by biting a person that the dog perceived as a threat. The dog might think that it was doing its “job”. It can be hard to scold your dog for doing something that it really believed was the right thing to do.
Obviously, the person that your dog bit is going to be upset, and perhaps emotionally scarred from the experience. The person may require medical attention, which can lead to expensive medical bills. This is generally what prompts people who were bitten by a dog to file an insurance claim.
In Spring and Summer, the weather gets warmer. You may have noticed that a lot of people are treating their dogs to a ride in their car. Others will put their dog into the back of their pickup truck, and drive that way. This can, potentially, be dangerous to the dog. If a car accident occurs, the dog may wind up being thrown from the car.
Other problems can arise when a person leaves their dog unattended in the back of their pickup truck, so the person can go into a store or restaurant. Some dogs will feel the need to protect their “territory”, which could mean the back of the truck, or the space surrounding it. There is potential that your dog will bite someone who got too close to the truck, or who tried to interact with the dog.
Which type of insurance should this dog bite claim be filed to? You might think that since the dog bite happened while your dog was in your truck, that the claim should be filed to your auto insurance policy. This would be an incorrect assumption.
Auto insurance is designed to cover damages that happen when your vehicle is in use. Typically, it is something that would cover the cost of the damages that your car caused to the car of the person whom you hit. So, even though it may seem counterintuitive, if your dog is sitting in the back of your truck, and bites someone, the claim does not get filed to your car insurance. Instead, the person who got bit needs to file a claim to your homeowners insurance policy.
Image by Cliff Cooper on Flickr