Dog Attack Compensation Claims

I offer a free first appointment in person, by phone, or by email to assess your claim.

If I assess that your claim is will likely result in a payout, and I agree to take it on for you, then you have no need to worry about fees. In those circumstances I will offer you my no win no fee service to run your claim with fees only payable upon your case being settled for a lump sum.

No fees will be payable along the way to settlement of your claim and in most of cases most of your legal fees will be covered by the insurer over and above your settlement when your claim settles.

You will receive a full explanation of my no-win no fee service at your first appointment.

Dog attacks should be reported to the local council in which the dog attack occurred, and the attack will then be investigated by a council ranger. Thereafter the council might issue an infringement or decide to prosecute the dog owner.

The identity of the person who owned the dog is information that is kept confidential by the council.

To pursue your claim you will need to ascertain the identity of dog owner.

If you are faced with this problem, and you can’t identify that person, I can help.

The Dog Act 1976 (WA) imposes strict liability upon dog owners for dog attacks. That means a dog owner will be liable for an attack even if the attack wasn’t due to their fault or negligence. For example, a dog owner will still be liable for a dog attack even if they had no reason to believe their dog was going to attack anyone as it had always been well behaved and had not ever previously attacked or acted aggressively.

A dog attack claim is not just limited to a dog biting you. Other circumstances can be covered by the Dog Act 1976 such as:

• a dog rushes at you barking and in trying to run away or evade the dog you fall and injure yourself.
• a dog attacks your dog. Whilst trying to save your dog and separate the two you suffer injury.
• you are riding your bike or e-scooter, and a dog chases after you and causes you to lose control, fall to ground and suffer injury.

If you have been injured in a dog attack, no matter what the circumstances are, then I can help you.

If you have a valid dog attack compensation claim, then the compensation you are entitled to can include:

1. General damages for pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life and loss of amenities.

2. Loss of earning capacity (including superannuation) both past and future;

3. Hospital, surgical, medical, pharmaceutical and other treatment expenses both past and future;

4. Services of a nursing and domestic nature whether paid or gratuitous both past and future;

5. Travel expenses

Yes, time strict limits do apply for commencing court proceedings for compensation related to dog attacks.

You must either settle your compensation claim or commence court proceedings for that claim before 3 years elapses from the date of the dog attack.

Longer time limits within which to settle or commence court proceeding will apply for people who were minors (under the age of 18) when the attack occurred. Longer time limits can apply to mentally disabled people in some circumstances.

If time limits are not strictly adhered to you could forever lose your right to obtain compensation.

In many dog attack cases the person liable to pay you compensation will hold a policy of insurance that will provide cover. That policy, for example, could be a home and contents policy, or it could be a pet insurance policy. If there is such a policy, then the insurer will pay your compensation entitlements.

If there is no such policy and the person liable doesn’t have the financial capacity to pay compensation, then you might have to consider pursuing Criminal Injuries Compensation.

If you have a valid dog attack compensation claim, then then it is likely you will be entitled to a payout.

Compensation entitlements for dog attacks are payable by way of a once and for all lump sum payment. In most cases the lump sum is in an amount negotiated and settled with an insurer.

Contact me to find out your rightful compensation payout with the help of my specialist legal knowledge and experience with dog attack compensation claims.

In almost all cases the answer is no.

No entitlements, not even medical expenses, will be paid prior to settlement.

In my experience, a dog owner will be ignoring you hoping you give up or the dog owner doesn’t know what to do about your claim. Sometimes, commencing legal action is the only way to get your dog attack claim up and running.

If this is happening to you then contact me as I have specialist legal knowledge and experience in dog attack claims to help you get your rightful compensation.

The simple answer is - not without first getting legal advice.

Often in dog attack claims the dog owner will offer to pay some of your medical expenses or you vet bill if your pet was also injured in the attack.

Your rightful entitlement to compensation may be much more than that and if you accept the offer, you could potentially forever end any further compensation payment.

This is not a simple question to answer. There are many considerations that can affect the worth of a dog attack compensation claim, such as:

• Whether you have a valid claim
• Whether you were partly to blame for the incident or your injury
• The nature and extent of the injuries you suffered in the attack
• The effect the injuries have had and will continue to have upon your general way of life,  your earning capacity, service needs and treatment needs.
• How long lasting your injuries are and whether they are likely to be permanent.
• Whether you had any pre-existing injuries or condition
• The strengths and weaknesses of any medical or other evidence obtained by the insurer.

Generally, dog attack claims for most type of injuries, even fairly significant ones can be finalised between 18 and 24 months. Other claims, for example those requiring multiple operations or those in involving serious psychological harm can take longer than that.

Your case should only be settled when it is in your best interests to do so. That will be when your injuries have reached medical stabilisation to the extent that a medical specialist can give an opinion with a fair degree of confidence as to the likely long-term effects your injuries will have upon you including you general way of life, your work capacity, your future need for medical, pharmaceutical and other treatment and/or your future need for services of a nursing or domestic nature.