When we purchase homeowner’s insurance, we do so because we want to be protected in the case of unexpected loss. Most of us consider this form of loss to be something that involves damage being done to the home in a storm or in an accident. However, a major portion of homeowner’s insurance goes towards another potential form of loss – legal liability for injuries that guests suffer while on the property. This liability coverage serves as protection if someone slips, falls and is injured while at your home as well as for families who have dogs. If someone is bitten by a dog, insurance will cover that situation.
Unfortunately, some breeds of dog are seen as more dangerous than others when it comes to assessing the risk of dog bite attacks from the perspective of insurance companies. As a result, one large insurance company has recently announced that it will no longer cover certain types of dogs. Below you will find a brief overview of this issue. Anyone who has been harmed in a dog bite attack needs to obtain the help of California injury lawyers as soon as possible.
Farmers Insurance Group and Dog Bite Coverage
Recently, Farmers Insurance Group, Inc. announced that it would be discontinuing its coverage of dog bites for breeds that include pit bull terriers, Rottweilers and wolf hybrids. These existing policies are not being canceled, but rather those policies will simply be allowed to lapse and they will not be renewed if homeowners have these dogs. In addition, the company will not offer coverage for these breeds on any new policies.
The reason for this decision, as is the case with any for-profit corporation, is money most likely. Spokespeople for Farmers Insurance Group have stated that 25 percent of dog bite attacks involve these breeds and that when these breeds attack, they tend to cause more damage to their targets than other dogs. While there are other studies and statistics that would tend to disagree with this assertion, the bottom line is that people will no longer be covered for these breeds and other insurance companies will likely follow suit.
Dog Bite Attacks and Legal Liability
What this obviously means for people who own these breeds is that in the future, if a dog bite attack occurs and people file lawsuits in response, any damages that are awarded a plaintiff will need to come directly from the defendant. There will be no insurance coverage to help defray these losses. That also means that for plaintiffs, there could be few if any real options for recovery in the absence of this insurance coverage.
