If you were performing a job, were lawfully on someone else's property, and their dog bit you, here are three things you need to know about what to do next and your legal rights.
Contact Emergency Services
The first thing you need to do is call 911. If you are seriously injured, ask for them to send out both emergency services and the police. You want emergency services to respond so that they can document and treat the dog bite. Depending on the seriousness of the dog bite, you may need to go to the emergency room.
You want the police to respond so you can file a report and let them know exactly what happened. This will also allow the police to survey the scene and write their own statement as well.
This is the best way to back up your version of events and establish an official timeline for what happened.
Take Photos
Second, if you are able to, you should take some pictures with your smartphone. Photograph your injuries to show what the damaged looked like immediately after the bite; if the damage gets worse over time, you'll want to continue to take pictures to document the damage.
You should also take pictures of the scene of the accident. Take pictures to show exactly where you were and what you were doing. Since you were on the property doing work, take pictures of the work that you were doing as well to officially establish your reasoning for being on the property.
Collect Information
You are going to want to collect information from the homeowner, if possible. You should get their name and additional contact information. You should also get their homeowner's or renter's insurance information. Their liability coverage falls under either their homeowner's or renter's insurance and should cover your medical bills.
Pursue Compensation
Since you were bitten while performing your job, there are a few different ways that you can pursue compensation. You can go through the dog owner's homeowner or renter's insurance and see if their liability coverage will pay for your medical bills; if this is not easy to facilitate, you can sue the dog owner and their insurance company.
Due to the fact that you were bitten while working, you may also be able to pursue a worker's compensation claim through your place of business. The best person to assist you in deciding what way is the best for you to go is a personal injury attorney. Contact one as soon as possible after you have been bitten so that you can move forward with getting the compensation that you deserve.
Share