Kaufman & Stigger, PLLC, represents Kentucky residents seriously hurt in dog bite incidents. Our Kentucky lawyers protect victims who suffer broken bones, deep puncture wounds, and other serious injuries due to the negligence of a dog owner. Contact a dog bite lawyer to schedule a free consultation and find out what you should demand for your injuries. It’s an easy way to determine the best way to hold a dog owner and an insurance company responsible.
Common Dog Bite Injuries
A walk in a Louisville park, like Cherokee Park, or a visit to a friend’s house could expose you or a family member to a frightened or confused dog. A nervous dog could bite you or a loved one to cause a devastating puncture wound.
The hands often prove the most vulnerable body parts on victims. Dogs may lunge for the hands because they are the easiest parts to reach. People may be attempting to pet dogs when a scared dog lashes out to nip fingers and thumbs.
Of course, a dog may go for any other part of the body. The feet and legs are usually easy to get to on most victims. A child will be lower to the ground and could suffer facial lacerations and organ damage. Dogs will be able to reach a child’s head and neck much easier and the consequences could be life-threatening.
Infection is always a worry because of the dangerous germs that live in a dog’s mouth. An infection can make healing take even longer and result in even more serious consequences.
These are just a few of the common dog bite wounds treated for adults and children in emergency rooms at places like The University of Louisville Hospital or Norton Hospital:
- Puncture Wounds and Avulsion
- Hand Injuries
- Ankle and Foot Injuries
- Eye Injuries and Facial Injuries
- Nerve Damage
- Infection Threat
- Rabies Threat
Who Is Responsible for My Medical Expenses After a Dog Bite in Louisville?
Kentucky is a “strict liability” state, which means that the owner of the dog that bit you is considered liable for an injury even if the dog has never shown aggressive behavior before. Strict liability makes it much easier for victims to prove who was responsible for a dog bite (the dog owner in most cases). Victims can then hopefully get the recovery support they need faster.
Kentucky also follows the legal concept of “comparative negligence.” This means that victims could be found partially to blame for a bite if they acted negligently. If the victim was trespassing at the time of the attack, the victim’s compensation may be reduced. If the victim provoked the dog, the patient may be held partially responsible. The victim might share in the liability if they acted in poor judgment and walked up to a barking or growling dog.
However, the dog owner would generally still be held responsible for a large portion of the recovery costs. Victims and their families could still count on substantial compensation.
Your Louisville dog bite lawyer would fully investigate your case and collect evidence to make sure you received as little of the blame as possible. And if you did nothing wrong, your lawyer would fight to get your blame reduced to zero.
Compensation Available for Dog Bite Injury Victims
Something as seemingly simple as a hand wound can result in the need for weeks or months of medical care. Victims may have lost feeling or control of a hand after suffering nerve and tendon damage. Patients may need multiple surgeries to make sure broken fingers heal correctly.
Physical therapy to help teach victims to use their damaged hands again will be costly. Those costs can continue over a lifetime if a dog bite wound results in a permanent physical disability.
Your lawyer forms a list of every hardship you and your family have been put through and will be put through in the future. These damages are backed with evidence and then submitted in a dog bite claim to the dog owner’s insurance provider.
Every hardship must be included because anything left off becomes a financial burden the victim and the victim’s family must bear.
These are just a few of the damages that will contribute to the size of a dog bite settlement check:
- Medical bills and ongoing care, like physical therapy, and restorative and corrective surgeries.
- Lifelong compensation and support for a victim left with a permanent physical disability.
- Travel costs as injured victims try to make all doctor’s appointments.
- Lifelong compensation for someone left with a permanent scar or disfigurement.
- Support for the pain victims suffer.
- Support for the emotional trauma victims must cope with.
- Replacement of lost income and benefits while the victim must miss work.
- Any property damage related to the incident, such as a damaged phone or broken sunglasses.
Contact a Louisville Dog Bite Lawyer
Dog bite victims in Kentucky have only one year to file an injury claim. It’s best to act as quickly as possible to make sure you receive help with your recovery costs before you hit serious financial issues.
Contact Kaufman & Stigger, PLLC for an absolutely free consultation on your case. It’s a no-stress way to determine who you should hold responsible for your wounds and how much in compensation you should demand. If you decide our attorneys can help you get the most out of your dog bite accident claim, you won’t need any money now. We don’t get paid unless we win your case for you. Then our fee comes out of the settlement you and your family are awarded.
