Dog strikes and bites: An owner’s duty to keep their four legged friend under control.

There is an estimated 10.2 million pet dogs in the UK, with a recent surge of new and inexperienced dog owners rearing puppies into adulthood under the less than ideal circumstances of COVID Lockdown.

As both a dog owner and a jogger, I see it from both sides. You feel that your angelic four legged friend can do no wrong and that everyone should love them, however likewise the number of times I have been tripped up by a dog off the lead whilst I have been out jogging is concerning.

What are the potential legal risks of my dog causing harm to someone else?

 If your dog jumps up at, pushes over, trips, bites and hurts someone, you can expect trouble at the very least from a civil legal perspective.

If the incident is reported to Police, depending on the severity of the incident and past canine history, your dog could be at risk of being put down if it is deemed dangerous by the courts.

What happens if I am liable?

If your dog has caused harm to someone through not being under control, under the Animals Act 1979 the person who suffered the harm may be able to make a claim against you either to the dog’s insurer or directly against you if there is no insurance cover for the dog.

There is a three stage test under this legislation to establish liability;

1. The injury was likely to be severe; and
2. that the injury was caused by a particular characteristic caused by a particular circumstances; and
3. that the owner had knowledge of this characteristic.

How to avoid the risk in the first place

As a dog owner, you can take the following simple steps to prevent your dog from causing harm to others out in public and potentially end up being sued for injuries caused:-

1. Avoid letting your dog off the lead in areas where there are other people using the space for scooters, walking, running and cycling.
2. If you are letting you dog off the lead, be sure they have excellent recall skills and are not reactive to/over excited by others using the space (i.e. some dogs have high prey drive and will actively run after and trip over joggers).
3. Only let your dog off the lead in secure ‘dog use specific’ fields, or areas where it is safe to do so and there is no risk to others.

It is also extremely useful to have insurance to cover accidents caused by dogs in case the worst should happen. This will allow the insurer to step in on your behalf and pay out any damages awarded for claims made.

Sadly there will always be a few owners who fail to take sensible steps to avoid their dogs causing accidents. My team and I are experienced that lawyers have acted on dog accident claims with great success in what is a highly complex area.

If you have been injured by the negligence of another dog owner, contact our friendly personal injury team for a free initial no obligation discussion about how they may be able to help by telephone or online.