Were you recently bitten by a dog that resulted in a serious injury, and now you're wondering if you have a valid lawsuit on your hands to receive compensation? If so, it helps to know what elements of the case need to be present for you to win.
Did The Dog Bite You?
While it may seem quite obvious that you need to be bitten by a dog, know that the injury must have been caused by the bite if you want to receive the most compensation possible. Sometimes people can suffer unexpected falls from a dog jumping on them, or get tripped up in their leash and end up taking a nasty fall that results in an injury. Your case will be much more clear if your injury resulted from a direct action from the dog.
Were You Trespassing?
You need to consider where you were at the time the dog bite happened. Were you in a public park where someone lost control of their dog or were you on someone's private property? If it was the latter, where were you trespassing on their property at the time of the incident? A dog bite caused by trespassing can be very hard to win compensation for because you got bit while doing something you should not have been doing. The dog may have been used specifically to guard the property as well, with it being trained to bite trespassers.
Did You Provoke The Dog?
You must think about if there was anything that you did to provoke the dog and cause them to bite you. This can be either intentional or accidental. If you stepped on the dog's tail or paw by accident, then that may be considered an action that provoked the dog into attacking you as a way to defend them. While there are other actions that are quite obvious that it is provoking the animal, it's the accidental provoking that is going to make your case challenging.
Were You Injured?
There needs to be some sort of injury in order for you to have a valid dog bite claim. If not, then you can't just sue due to a harmless bite. Injuries are not only based on the number of medical bills but the severity of the bite as well. Did the bite cause scarring that you will live with forever? If so, then this injury is going to be worth more.
To learn more about dog bite injuries, contact a company like BRIAN E. BUCKMEIER P.C. ATTORNEY AT LAW.
