Tampa Dog Bite Lawyer Discusses Your Pet Being Severely Injured by a Dog Attack
Sometimes individuals who come in to our office and say they have a dog bit case, but it involves a dog biting another dog. This dog caused substantial injuries and caused significant veterinary bills to be incurred. One of the things that’s important to remember in Florida is that animals are treated as property, and they are handled like a property damage claim. For example, if you’ve got a Yorkshire Terrier that you paid a thousand dollars for and as a result of a dog bite the dog needs extensive veterinary care, but the vet bill amounts to $1500. The owner of the dog, his insurance company and any attorney involved for the dog owner will argue that you are limited in your recovery to the value of your dog. In this case they will argue a $1,000 even though the bills may greatly eclipse that. That’s something that through litigation, we’re trying to change here in Florida.
The state of law here in Florida is that animals are treated as chattel or property and thus the damages you can recover for injuries to your pet as a result of veterinary bills is limited to the value of your dog.
