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There has been a growing popularity since the mid-1990s, of people choosing to own the more aggressive breeds of dogs. This is a security concern because dog attacks are now the largest single cause of homeowner insurance policy claims. Dogs and their bites have become a major concern for homeowner insurance companies and considering the statistics it’s not hard to see why:
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reports that more than 4.7 million people are bitten by dogs every year with an estimated 800,000 injuries requiring medical treatment. More than 50 percent of the bites happen on the owner’s property, often to visitors and family members.
- During 2006 insurance companies paid out $351.4 million, for dog bite claims. This was up an astounding 10.8 percent from 2005.
- The actual number of dog bite claims paid by insurance companies actually fell from around 20,800 in 2002 to only 15,000 in 2005 but the cost of the average dog bite claim sky rocketed from about $16,600 in 2002 to more then $21,200 in 2005.
- Just about 4 percent of all homeowner claims are dog bite Liability claims and dog bite claims accounted for nearly 15 percent of liability claims paid under homeowner insurance policies during 2005.
- Several states have laws with stiff penalties for owners of dogs that cause serious injuries or deaths.
- About one-third of states dog owners are “strictly liable” for their dogs’ behavior, and in the other states owners are liable only if they knew or should have known their dogs had a propensity to bite. This is known as the “one free bite” principle.
- Insurance companies may send underwriters or inspectors to check a home owner’s property. When there is a dog the insurance company may check the environment. The home will be checked for things such as:
- Fenced yards
- Clean groomed area of the yard (is the doogie-doo picked up?)
- Is the animal well cared for, or left out in the yard all day?
- After an insurance inspection the insurance company may send a letter to the policyholder asking questions about the dog such as:
- Whether the dog is licensed?
- Is the dog neutered or spayed, male neutered dogs are much less prone to biting and females are common for breeding.
- You may be asked if the dog has been provided an special training
- Insurance companies can impose a dog breed exclusion and they can cancel a homeowner insurance policy, for or any breed bans there may be in place.
- Some homeowner associations have rules and regulations that disallow some dog breeds
Related Blogs:
- House Fire Hero’s Cause Cancellation of Homeowner Insurance
- Pet Health Insurance, Good Deal or No Deal
- Personal Liability Umbrella Insurance
Glossary of Insurance Terms:
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