If a person is at my home but uninvited and drinking and is asked not to bother my dog but does so anyway, if he is bitten am I responsible for his medical bills?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
If a person is at my home but uninvited and drinking and is asked not to bother my dog but does so anyway, if he is bitten am I responsible for his medical bills?
This person decided to harass the dog causing the dog to bite him; as a result he had to get stitches.
Asked on May 6, 2013 under Personal Injury, Louisiana
Answers:
S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
Ordinarily, a dog owner is liable for injury caused by the dog; however, in your situation if he files a lawsuit against you for negligence, you should assert the defense of assumption of the risk. Assumption of the risk means he recognized and understood the danger and voluntarily chose to encounter it by antagonizing your dog. This would provide with you a defense to his lawsuit and liability for the medical bills.
As the owner of the property, you would be liable under premises liablilty for injury occurring on your property to a trespasser, uninvited guest, etc. As mentioned above, your defense is assumption of the risk which you should assert to avoid liability for the medical bills.
It would be advisable to notify your homeowner's insurance carrier of this incident.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.