Animal Attacks!

Here at The Injury Lawyers, we have seen it all! And believe us when we say there really are such a variety of claims for personal injury. At the end of the day, if you have been injured and it wasn’t your fault, it’s more than likely you are eligible to claim.

So, what happens when animals attack!?

Thankfully, in Britain I think it’s safe to say the danger of being attacked by a wild animal is fairly limited, given that our country is not home to many ferocious beasts!

But it does happen more commonly elsewhere;

According to Mirror News, an unfortunate golfer attempting to retrieve his ball fell victim to an alligator ambush at the Ocean Creek course in Beaufort County, South Carolina. The gator grabbed the golfer by his arm and dragged him in to the pond, proceeding to perform a deadly death roll before he managed to escape. The man was taken to hospital and his arm was placed in ice. (source)

This type of accident is unlikely in Britain. We have however seen a number of successes in cases involving animals as the cause of negligence. Here are two examples of plausible claims:

1. Dog bites: Particularly if the species or pet itself is known to be rather vicious then the owner has a responsibility to ensure the animal does not harm another person.
2. Escaped cattle: Yes, this has happened before! And a herd of cows let loose on a country road can be an unfortunate accident waiting to happen. Owners are responsible for ensuring their livestock is sufficiently contained. We recently won a claim against the insurance company of a farmer as the farmers’ son had negligently allowed his sheep to run across the road causing a collision with a motorcycle and our client was a pillion passenger and seriously injured as a result of the accident.

Also under the Animals Act 1971, whereby strict liability in the law of tort (negligence) is applied if it is foreseeable that an animal can come to cause injury to another person, e.g. if the ferocious behaviour of a particular pet or species is well known to the owner.

An animal owner has a duty of care to others.

So, what should you do if you have been injured as a result of an animal attack whereby negligence can falls upon its owners?: Seek advice from independent expert personal injury solicitors such as ourselves and see if you can claim for compensation.

A lot of animal owners now have pet insurance which in many instances pays for the entire claim should you unfortunately be injured as a result of the animals behaviour. So claiming may be easier than you imagine!

Just Remember: Owners have responsibility to ensure their animal cannot harm another person! If it does, they may be negligent under the Animals Act 1971!