QUESTION: DOGS form part of the security system at our home. Though they have received obedience training, we worry about them running loose on the road and injuring persons or causing accidents. Can we buy insurance to protect ourselves?
- D.R., Red Hills P.O.
Answer: It seems like only yesterday that a reader posed a similar question. When I looked at my 'old-time' scrap book instead of the virtual one on my computer hard drive - I suffered a rude awakening. Yesterday, it turned out, was nearly 10 years ago. I will use my October 1, 1997 article, suitably updated, of course, as a source for this response.
Your concern is justified. There is a law in force that deals with liability for dog bites. It is called the Dogs (Liability for Injuries By) Act. It was passed over 128 years ago. According to Section Two, dog owners are 'liable in damages for injury done to any person ...' Further, '... it shall not be necessary for the party seeking such damages to show a previous mischievous propensity in such dog ...' This means simply that the owners are liable, period! How many persons, including dog owners, are aware of this law?
About five dog bites occur in Jamaica every day. This estimate is based on the statistics of Accident and Emergency (A&E) Unit of the University Hospital of the West Indies. Marilyn Duff, Ph.D., R.N., in a letter to the editor of this newspaper dated December 4, 1997, said that four per cent of all the trauma cases in the unit were caused by dog bites. If this figure were applied to the nearly 43,000 A&E cases that were seen at all the island's public hospitals during 2002, the annual number of such cases would total 1,700. Since public hospitals have no monopoly on treatment, my estimate is probably low.
Court awards for personal injuries have risen sharply over the past few years. To cite a recent example, our Supreme Court recently ruled that a 62-year-old woman was entitled to $17.6 million in damages. Her claim was for injuries that she suffered in an accident. Before this, awards tended to be smaller. The rising trend in the size of awards is not well-known outside of legal circles. It is, however, an important point to consider when thinking about the things that can go wrong.
You can buy insurance to protect your family against claims for injuries due to dog bites. The coverage - liability insurance -
is sold bundled (or married); it forms part of the contract that insures house contents.
If you have not got contents insurance, you get no dog bite liability coverage. The fact that you have contents coverage does not always mean you have the protection. All policies are not created equal.
Liability insurance, under a household contract, provides 'all sums that the policyholder may become legally liable to pay' as a result of claims for damages from third parties. Protection is not limited to claims resulting from the ownership of dogs. It includes a wide range of seemingly low-hazard activities, as well as liabilities imposed on occupiers of premises under the Occupiers' Liability Act. Coverage is not open-ended. The policy is usually subject to a standard limit of a few million dollars.
I suggest that you discuss your family's specific needs with your insurance adviser. This should ensure that you get the best deal for the most appropriate price and, hopefully, go a far way in allaying your concerns.
Cedric E. Stephens provides independent information and advice about the management of risks and insurance. If you need free information or counsel to help you solve a problem, write to The Financial Editor, or contact Mr. Stephens directly at aegis@cwjamaica.com.
