No matter how domesticated and docile a dog may seem, they can still become agitated and lash out. When a dog reverts to its instinctual nature and bites you, the injuries can be serious and require extensive medical care. The unfortunate reality is that some dog bite injuries are more serious than others, especially if the bite occurs on or near your eyes.
The eye is among the most sensitive parts of the human body, and injuries to this area nearly always require specialized care and treatment. Couple this with the fact that dog bites often carry a risk of infection from bacteria, and a dog bite injury to your eye immediately becomes an ordeal for you and your loved ones.
Work With Experienced and Compassionate California Dog Bite Lawyers
Suffering an injury due to a dog bite is an often traumatic experience. Especially if your vision is threatened by a dog bite injury to your eye, you and your loved ones will likely need significant care and compensation to pay for the resulting damage.
Our team of experienced and compassionate California dog bite lawyers at Maison Law know how the law applies to and the route to recovery for dog bites. Contact us today to get started with a free consultation.
Why Are Dog Bites So Severe?
Unfortunately, the reason dog bite injuries are so severe is because there are multiple aspects that you have to worry about. When a dog bites you, not only do their teeth rip and tear at skin and eyes, their jaws clamp down and can break bones.
However, the single biggest complication from a dog bite is often infection due to the bacteria that dog’s carry in their mouths. While the infection can present in the days after the bite incident, if the infection is near your eye, the potential for permanent vision loss is frighteningly high.
What Are Some Common Dog Bite Eye Injuries in California?
Obviously, any eye injury needs to be treated immediately because of the sensitivity of the area. While every incident is unique, there are a few common injuries that can result from a dog bite near your eye, including:
- Corneal lacerations – A corneal laceration is a cut to the outermost surface of your eye- the cornea. Any type of trauma can cause a corneal laceration, but they are most commonly caused by a dog bite where the dog’s teeth scrape your cornea.
- Penetrating injuries – Usually, dog bites occur outside, but they can happen anywhere. When they occur outside, foreign objects like grass seed, splinters from wood, dust, and other debris or material that can cause inflammation, trauma, and infection in your eye and must be removed quickly. Worse yet, these foreign bodies can often get lodged under the eyelids and can cause further injury.
- Eyelid laceration – Much like corneal lacerations, lacerations to your eyelid are also common in dog bites. Your eyelid plays an important role in protecting the eye and any changes to its shape can result in irritation to the surface of your eye over time. Eyelid lacerations also frequently require surgery to repair them.
- Blunt trauma and proptosis – The most common injury from a dog bite, aside from infection, is the blunt trauma and wounding from the bite itself. You can imagine how dangerous a bite around your eye can be, especially if the bite comes from a larger, more powerful dog. Because of the impact of the bite itself, sometimes the eye can be dislocated from its socket, which is known as “proptosis.”
No matter what eye injury you suffer from a dog bite in California, there are laws in place that govern who is responsible and how exactly you can recover compensation to pay for your injuries.
When Is a Dog Owner Responsible for Dog Bite in California?
When it comes to dog bites, California is a “strict liability” state. This means that a person or party may be considered liable for an injury even if the harmful incident was not caused intentionally.
While the dog’s owner is always liable for any damages in a dog bite incident, there are other considerations that are factored in also:
- The owner is liable if the attack occurred in a public place or on private property where the victim was invited onto the property.
- The victim cannot recover damages if they provoked the dog into the attack.
This means that if you were trespassing on the dog owner’s property, you can’t file a claim for damages after getting bit. However, if you were invited onto the property and are bitten, you can pursue a claim for damages from the owner.
How Can I Be Compensated After a Dog Bite in California?
Like any other injury, there are several factors that will determine just how much you will be compensated for a dog bite injury in California. Further, when the dog’s owner doesn’t have a policy that includes dog bites, their homeowner’s insurance will be the primary policy responsible.
Any claim for compensation must first be initiated by filing an insurance claim with the owner’s insurance carrier. Because of California’s liability laws, there’s no question about who is responsible, only the degree to which the dog’s owner will have to pay.
Once you file your claim, you are unfortunately at the mercy of the insurance company. The insurance company will no doubt try to employ many of the same tactics it uses in other instances to devalue your claim. Ultimately though, the final settlement amount the company will land on will involve the following factors:
- The severity of your injuries.
- The medical treatment necessary to treat and recover from your injuries.
- The losses of income you will have suffered because of the bite.
- The psychological trauma suffered as a result of the bite.
Once a settlement amount is offered, you can either accept it, counter it, or decline it. Chances are, if the settlement offer is low or you feel you can get more compensation, you can file a personal injury lawsuit.
Personal Injury Lawsuit
Like all personal injury claims in California, there is a statute of limitations in which you can file a claim. The statute of limitations for personal injury claims in California is two years from the date of your injury.
Once this hurdle is crossed and your lawsuit is filed, it will proceed in much the same way other injury lawsuits do. To that end, working with our team of experienced and skilled California dog bite lawyers can help position your case as best as possible.
We’ll help you gather as much evidence as possible, review and analyze this evidence and any evidence provided by the insurance company, and make sure we have the policy information of the dog’s owner. From there, we will make sure all deadlines are met and your claim for damages is airtight as can be.
While every case is different, dog bite claims in California can recover the following damages:
- Medical expenses
- Lost wages and reduced earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of companionship
- Property damage
- Punitive damages
Obviously, the more extensive and permanent your eye injuries are, the more compensation you can potentially recover. Eye injuries, although traumatic, are rarely the result of a preexisting condition. As such, the owner’s insurance company can’t claim that you had the eye injury prior to the bite incident as a way to devalue your claim.
Skilled, Compassionate Representation From California Dog Bite Lawyers
Being bitten by a dog is a traumatic and painful experience. When you factor in the potential loss of vision because the bite occurred around your eye, it can make an already stressful situation much worse.
When this happens, you need skilled, compassionate legal representation. Our team of California dog bite lawyers at Maison Law know how to approach these cases and get you the compensation you deserve. To find out more about how we can help you, contact us today for a free consultation.
