Maison Law represents California dog bite victims who suffer frightening hand injuries. We stand by our clients through a difficult recovery to restore the use of their hands. We make sure they can pay every medical bill and receive financial support while they can’t go to work. Victims should contact us for a free, no-obligation consultation. It’s a no-risk opportunity to find out what your case may be worth and how to hold a dog owner and insurance companies fully responsible for a hand injury.
Do I Need a Dog Bite Lawyer After Getting Bitten on the Hand?
If your hand injuries after a bite incident turn out to be very minor, such as bruising or superficial scratches, you may not need the help of a lawyer. But when victims suffer broken fingers or deep puncture wounds, the medical bills are often enormous.
The elevated costs scare insurance adjusters and they immediately begin trying to devalue your case. They attempt to blame you for the situation that led to the bite. They might find one of their own doctors to cast doubt on how badly you are hurt.
Your California dog bite lawyer is there to safeguard your case and make sure you receive every benefit available. Your lawyer fully investigates your accident and collects all evidence to build a strong claim. This is the best way to keep insurers from creating excuses to reject your claim or reduce the support they provide.
Dog Bite Hand Injury Dangers
Dogs who bite often go after the closest available body part. That can be a hand in many instances. Victims may also be bending over to pet a dog when the dog snaps at a hand. Of course, young children are shorter and all of their body parts will be closer to a dog’s mouth, including tiny hands.
Fingers, thumbs, and hand bones easily fracture in the crushing grip of a dog’s jaw. Victims can lose fingers in a bite incident and patients must hope they can be reattached.
Bites in the joints of fingers and hands are susceptible to infection due to the fluids naturally found there. They provide a breeding ground for the germs found in a dog’s mouth.
A recovery can mean a quick trip to an emergency room, but some victims endure much more. They may spend time in the hospital after emergency surgery. They may face months of physical therapy. A Maison Law dog bite attorney documents each and every hardship victims face to make sure they earn full support for these damages.
Dog Bite Consequences on Our Daily Lives
Care for the average hand injury can easily go over $10,000. Surgery and extensive physical therapy can push those costs up quickly. And some injuries may never heal, leaving victims and their families facing the consequences over a lifetime.
Victims could suffer nerve damage in their hands and experience permanent numbness and a loss of motor function. They could also lose a finger in a bite incident or afterward when a surgical amputation is necessary. These devastating injuries might result in a permanent disability for the victim.
Hand injuries can quickly become life-changing events due to the many things we use our hands for. Nerve damage and tendon damage affect the amount of control we have to grasp or even type on a computer. A large finger splint might make it hard to take care of our family responsibilities in our daily lives and at our jobs.
Homeowners or renters insurance may be liable for long-term support, helping victims with finding a new job if they can’t perform their old job duties. Medical equipment and physical therapy would also need to be paid for by the dog owner’s insurers.
Your lawyer would collect evidence and witness testimony to make assure insurance adjusters could not stick you and your family with the expenses of recovery.
For more information on the many different types of injuries that can result from a dog bite injury and the insurance tactics to watch out for check out Maison Law’s page on California dog bite injuries.
Who Is Responsible for Dog Bite Injuries and Medical Bills?
Dogs can lash out for a variety of reasons. They may be frightened or confused. But the fault will almost always lie with a dog owner. They should have kept the dog restrained where it couldn’t reach a victim and a vulnerable appendage like a victim’s hand.
California follows the legal concept of “strict liability” in dog bite cases. It means that dog owners are liable after a pet bites someone in most instances. It’s the dog owner’s fault even if the dog doesn’t have a history of aggression.
In each case, the dog owner would be held accountable under strict liability. The liability is usually clear unless:
- The victim provoked the dog.
- The victim was trespassing at the time.
Strict liability is a legal concept that makes it easier to determine who was at fault for a bite (usually the owner). It makes it easier for victims to seek justice. But a bite must have occurred in order for victims to sue using strict liability. If there’s no bite, then strict liability wouldn’t apply.
However, a bite is still a bite even if it doesn’t break the skin. Especially when a hand is involved. Bones can be crushed and tendons stretched without major damage to the outer skin layers.
Compensation for Hand Injury Victims
Your lawyer will ask for economic and non-economic damages in a dog bite injury claim. Economic damages are things that can usually be easily totaled from the bills a victim receives in the mail and the financial losses suffered. They include things like a doctor’s bill or a paycheck that’s much lighter than usual because you’ve missed work.
Your lawyer will list a few hardships in your claim you may not have realized could earn additional support on a dog bite injury settlement check:
- Full coverage on hospital bills and emergency response fees.
- Physical therapy costs to learn to regain the use of hand and restore strength.
- The estimated costs of living a life with a permanent disability or long-term disfigurement. This may include care and specialized medical equipment over a lifetime for a lost finger. It may include career and education assistance if the victim cannot go back to a previous job.
- Physical pain the victim has endured.
- Emotional trauma the victim has suffered through, including PTSD symptoms from a dog bite incident and anxiety.
- Loss of enjoyment of life and the inability to participate in family activities.
- Travel costs for doctor and specialist visits.
- Reimbursement for the loss of benefits and paychecks while the victim misses time at work.
- Damage or destruction of property.
Contact a California Dog Bite Attorney
California law allows dog bite victims up to two years from the date of the accident to file an injury claim. You shouldn’t delay when you’ve suffered a serious hand injury. It’s easier for your lawyer to collect evidence to prove the fault of the dog owner in the early going.
After you or a loved one has suffered a serious dog bite injury, contact a California Dog Bite Lawyer to discuss your case, free of charge. It’s a no-risk opportunity to find out about all the benefits available to you and how to hold an insurance company fully responsible.
If you feel we can help you earn more for your injury recovery, you won’t need any upfront money to hire Maison Law. We don’t accept payment unless we win your case for you. Then our fee comes out of the award you receive from an insurance company.
