Dog ran into me and I broke my ankle - now what?

Andyclockwise

NotSuchASmugMarriedNow wrote: »

And many pet owners don't have pet insurance anyway. Me for one.

I sincerely hope your animal doesn't fall ill. Last year we maxed out our dog's claim limit 7k as a result of a gut problem. Year before we had about 4k of vets bills paid too. Anyone who doesn't have insurance is taking a seriously big gamble with their wealth, or the animal's welfare. Perhaps you shouldn't have a pet.

catkins

esmerelda98 wrote: »

It is views like this that create such a 'them' and 'us' mentality between dog/cat owners and others. No care or concern whatsoever for a person who has suffered a serious injury. They have been left in a seriously negative financial position, there is no concern for that, only a concern for the premiums of the dog owner. The fact that there was no intention to harm does not mean there is no responsibility. The responsibility is to bear the loss caused by your pet. Why should the injured party bear the loss? The law only expects the dog owner to compensate the injured party to the extent that they have lost out financially, not to give them a windfall.

These are the risks that come with pet ownership, if you cannot bear to be held responsible for the actions of your pet, some of which cannot be predicted, please do not own a pet. You are clearly unsuitable for pet ownership.

It was an accident. I feel for the OP's partner of course I do but you cannot go around suing right left and centre.


If it had been a child who tripped the partner over would you say the same or is it just dogs you don't seem to like?

GwylimT wrote: »

A few years ago I broke my collar bone as I tripped over a two year old who had toddled behind me, there is no way I would ever had considered using his parents. As you mentioned op that your dog was off the lead, I hope you are covered to cover the cost of mere accidents.

Totally agree. How many posters on here saying the dog owner should be sued would be saying that if a child had caused the accident?

esmerelda98 wrote: »

The dog causes injury. Its owner is negligent but the victim should bear the financial cost fully. There has not even the faintest suggestion on this thread that the dog owner should in any way bear some of the costs. Really, this tells me everything I need to know. This is about people selfishly thinking of themselves (understandable to some extent) with no consideration for others (not understandable). The compensation culture argument has merely been a red herring. I'm out of this discussion, with a new appreciation of the depths to which people will sink to protect themselves.

Why should the dog owner pay anything? It was an accident, can you not see that?


A dog is NOT a robot. The best behaved dog in the world is not 100% perfectly behaved all day every day. I have been knocked over by a dog - no harm done - but I would not have sued if it had been. I have come close to going over when a small child ran straight into my path and in my attempt not to hurt the child I almost went over, also when a child on a bike suddenly shot in front of me. Again, if I had been hurt I would not have dreamt of trying to sue the parents.

Sally22_2

They aren't trying to sue the owners themselves, they are trying to see if they can claim from the insurance the owner has on their pet for events such as the one that has happened!

catkins

eskimo26 wrote: »

The dog was out of control and caused injury.

It's the job of the owner to make sure their dog is not harming anyone in anyway whether that is an aggressive dog or a big dog throwing their body against you and making you topple over.

Only a selfish irresponsible owner would think otherwise. I would have called the Police on the non-emergency number it sounds like a serious injury.

This is not compensation culture, CONTROL YOUR DOGS it is YOUR responsibility.

The dog was running around having fun like children do! It could have just as easily been a child that caused the accident and I can almost guarantee people would not be suggesting the parents should be sued.


As I said above, dogs are NOT robots and you need to get real. I can just imagine the police's response to a phone call about this

Andyclockwise wrote: »

I sincerely hope your animal doesn't fall ill. Last year we maxed out our dog's claim limit 7k as a result of a gut problem. Year before we had about 4k of vets bills paid too. Anyone who doesn't have insurance is taking a seriously big gamble with their wealth, or the animal's welfare. Perhaps you shouldn't have a pet.

Well if you are going to suffer so much financially what if you can't afford the pet insurance? I know a couple of people who had good jobs and pets and had them insured. One has lost their job and cannot find another and a couple of others have had to take much lower paid jobs. They all can no longer afford pet insurance. It would help if the pet insurance was not so expensive.


As lots have said, it was an accident. What if she had fallen down the stairs at home or tripped over the doorstep? Would you have tried to sue the builders?

nearlyrich

A friend of mine was in a similar accident with a huge dog that came out of nowhere and ploughed into him, he damaged his knee and six months later is still undergoing physio...

moggymutt

This thread is heading in a very depressing direction- I find the number of people who don't want to accept responsibility for their dogs actions very, very depressing

Buzby

NotSuchASmugMarriedNow wrote: »

And many pet owners don't have pet insurance anyway. Me for one.

Neither do I, but as he's a member of my family is covered for third party claims similar to this.

mountainofdebt

Andyclockwise wrote: »

Agree, she is a NHS Community nurse, so unless all the patients come to us, this could be a tricky one.

Aside from the issue of compensation for pain and suffering, I always thought that the NHS offered good sick pay packages ?

I have to admit that yes I have been hit by a bouncy lab and it brought tears to my eyes. Couldn't say much though as the dog was being chased by my mutt at the time

Somerset

catkins wrote: »

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As lots have said, it was an accident. What if she had fallen down the stairs at home or tripped over the doorstep? Would you have tried to sue the builders?

What if the dog ran into the road, caused a car to swerve and crash, killing the occupants - would you still say it was just an accident, that dogs aren't robots ?


From memory, dog owner's are fully and financially responsible for their dogs. It's why dog insurance has third party astronomical liability. You, as the owner, bear the financial consequences. And yes I have a dog, and he's insured.

Andyclockwise

mountainofdebt wrote: »

Aside from the issue of compensation for pain and suffering, I always thought that the NHS offered good sick pay packages ?

I have to admit that yes I have been hit by a bouncy lab and it brought tears to my eyes. Couldn't say much though as the dog was being chased by my mutt at the time

She was ill with a serious condition for 5 months from Nov last year and was just getting back onto her feet again. So many people are making silly assumptions, false accusations and going off track here.


Thanks for all the comments to date.