Dog bites can have severe consequences, even when the dog involved is small. These injuries could result in nerve damage, disfigurement, or worse. In addition to the pain, these bites can also take a significant physical, emotional, and financial toll. After an animal attack, you can get help building a claim from a Stamford dog bite lawyer.
At Skiber Law, we can review your situation and work to bring you maximum compensation for your losses. Our Stamford personal injury lawyers have brought clients like you over $100 million in compensation, and we’re ready to offer you dedicated service today.
In some circumstances, we can hold a dog owner financially responsible for the actions of their animal. For a thorough case evaluation, reach out to our team now.
Why Hire a Dog Bite Lawyer in Stamford, CT?
Hiring a personal injury attorney after an animal attack can directly improve your chances of securing the money you need to make a full financial recovery. An attorney from our team will put you first, providing the dedicated support that you deserve in this challenging time.
You can count on us to:
Give You Legal Answers
We can answer any questions you have about your legal rights and options after a dog attack. We’ll take the time to listen to your specific concerns through a free initial consultation and remain available for communication throughout the legal process.
In fact, you can always reach out to us through text or email. You can even come into the office for a face-to-face conversation. We make a point of providing same–day communication and can often get back to you within minutes.
Build Your Claim
We get to work fast on building legal claims for injury victims. We understand what it takes to establish negligence on the part of an animal’s owner in the aftermath of an attack and can immediately start gathering evidence.
In order to establish the facts about your accident, we may:
- Speak with eyewitnesses
- Get a report from animal control
- Visit businesses near the site of the attack to see if they have surveillance footage of the incident
We’re ready to get started now, so don’t hesitate to reach out.
Deal with the Insurance Company
You can count on us to handle all legal communication with the insurance company after an attack. We handle these conversations to protect your claim because we know how to counter the strategies these companies use to deny claims or downplay the losses of injury victims.
Allowing a Stamford dog bite lawyer to handle insurance representatives also gives you more time to focus on your recovery.
Compensation Available After a Dog Bite
You may qualify for funds to cover all the losses associated with an animal attack. A dog bite attorney in Stamford can review your situation and provide specific information about the money available. In many cases, we can bring our clients the money they deserve for their:
Medical Expenses
Animal bites can result in catastrophic injuries. For example, injury victims often need immediate treatment for:
- Crush injuries that could result in tissue tears
- Tendon and joint injuries
- Puncture injuries that damage the underlying muscle and bone
These injuries often have complications, especially puncture wounds. The risk of infection is high for animal bites, so you may need a course of antibiotics, a tetanus shot, and treatment for the possibility of rabies.
Additionally, some bites require surgery and extensive physical therapy to allow victims to regain their range of motion and function in the injury area. All of these treatments can increase your medical expenses. We take the costs associated with these injuries seriously and can track all of your medical bills, fighting to ensure you get paid for all of these losses.
Pain and Suffering
Animal attacks cause more than physical injuries. These bites often leave victims with emotional trauma that can last for years or even a lifetime. You could qualify for funds to address these non-economic damages.
Our team knows how to determine an accurate value for your emotional distress, mental suffering, and any pain that impacts your ability to enjoy your daily life. We take the mental and emotional pain associated with animal attacks seriously and will factor them into your claim.
Lost Wages
Finally, the severity of your injuries after a dog attack may prevent you from going back to work for an extended period. The liable party may have to cover your lost pay and reduced earning potential if the attack results in a disability.
You can learn more about the potential compensation available in your situation by contacting us immediately for help.
Who Pays You After an Animal Attack?
Generally, the dog’s owner will hold liability after an animal attack. Connecticut Statutes § 22-357 governs liability in these cases. This statute follows a “strict liability” standard, meaning you could recover compensation without having to establish that the dog owner was negligent.
This strict liability standard makes it much easier to recover compensation on behalf of victims. To recover compensation under a strict liability standard, a plaintiff must only show they suffered an injury due to a dog.
Do Owners Have to Pay for Every Dog Attack?
Dog owners are not liable for all animal attacks. For example, individuals may not receive compensation if they were trespassing at the time of the attack. Additionally, the owner may avoid liability if they can prove that the victim got bitten after tormenting, teasing, or abusing a dog.
Can Other Parties Hold Liability for Dog Bites?
A dog’s “keeper” may also face strict liability for an animal attack in Stamford. Individuals may legally qualify as a dog’s “keeper” if they have taken on the responsibilities that would generally apply to the owner and have control over the animal.
For example, a pet sitter staying at someone’s house to care for a dog while the owner is out of town could qualify as a “keeper.”
Does Insurance Pay for Dog Bites?
In most cases, yes, the money you need after an animal attack will come from the liable party’s homeowners’ insurance policy. However, insurance companies often try to block and deny these claims because they want to protect their profits.
Therefore, it’s essential that you get help from a legal professional when handling insurance representatives. We can level the playing field and represent your best interests during the negotiation process.
What You Need to Know About Connecticut’s One-Bite Rule
Most dog bite claims involve strict liability, as discussed above. However, in some cases, our state’s “One-Bite” rule may come into play, allowing you to seek compensation from someone other than the dog‘s owner or keeper.
Basically, this law says that someone else may have liability for an animal attack if they knew (or they should have known) that the dog was dangerous. Generally, this law comes into play when determining the potential liability of a business owner or landlord.
Under the law, a landlord or property owner could have to pay for your losses if they knew a dog possessed dangerous tendencies and failed to use reasonable precautions to stop the animal from hurting people. We can provide more information about the “One-Bite” rule and how it could apply in your situation when you contact us for help.
Why Choose Us After an Animal Attack?
The team at Skiber Law understands what you’re going through in the aftermath of an animal attack. We provide compassionate assistance while focusing on common–sense solutions that can allow us to resolve your claim successfully.
We take a client-centric approach to all claims we handle, working with you directly to provide the personalized attention you deserve. Additionally, our firm has a reputation for excellence due to our record of success. We’re ready to take on your claim when you reach out to us for a risk-free initial consultation, so contact us now.
We Work on Contingency
You don’t have to worry about legal fees when you choose us to help after an animal attack. We take on these claims using a contingency system, which means you only pay for our fees after we totally resolve your claim.
We never want to add to the financial pressures you can experience in the aftermath of an attack involving a dog. You can learn more about our fee structure with a free consultation.
How Long Do You Have to File a Claim?
Connecticut’s personal injury statute of limitations will typically give you two years to seek compensation after an animal attack. However, this deadline can shift and vary based on the facts surrounding the attack.
A dog bite attorney in Stamford can review your situation and provide more exact information about the timeline for your case.
How Long Does a Dog Bite Claim Take?
The time it takes to resolve your claim will vary based on several factors, including the method we use to bring you compensation. Insurance settlement negotiations, for example, may take several months at a minimum.
If the insurance representative refuses to negotiate in good faith, we may need to help with a lawsuit. Going through the civil court system typically takes longer than insurance negotiations.
We’ll do everything we can to expedite the legal process, minimizing the time you have to wait to get the money you deserve.
We Understand Defenses to Dog Bite Claims
In most cases, establishing that the defendant owned the dog involved in a bite is the central issue of a dog bite claim. However, there are two important defenses to consider. These defenses include the provocation defense and the trespassing defense.
The provocation defense is common in a dog bite lawsuit. The dog bite statute explicitly rules out compensation for any plaintiff involved in “teasing, taunting, or abusing” a dog prior to the attack. Provocation could involve hitting or poking a dog, but it could also include non-physical harassment. Aggressive movements or verbal taunting also qualify.
The trespassing defense also bars recovery if a plaintiff suffered a bite on property they were not authorized to be on. This defense prevents a trespasser from seeking compensation after sustaining a bite injury from a guard dog. We can discuss your situation and counters to these defenses when you contact us for help.
Talk to Us After an Animal Attack in Stamford, CT
Dog bites happen every day. While minor bites heal on their own in a matter of days, serious bite injuries could have lifelong consequences for you or your family. Fortunately, you have legal options.
If you are ready to bring a bite injury lawsuit, you do not have to take on this challenge by yourself. A Stamford dog bite attorney from Skiber Law could help you secure maximum compensation for your losses.
Call today to schedule your free dog bite lawsuit consultation.