Savannah Injury Lawyers Help Dog Bite Victims Recover FROM Trauma

Determined representation focused on obtaining full compensation

Dog bite law in Georgia is a mix of state law and your local city or county ordinances. Contrary to popular belief, there is no one bite rule. Instead, the law is that an owner must protect other people from a dog which has shown dangerous propensities. Those dangerous propensities can be a prior bite but do not have to be. There has to be proof of the aggressive nature of that dog, and that the owner knew it. We will look into prior incidents by checking with county or city animal control, talking to neighbors, etc.

The Georgia general dangerous dog rule is combined with city and county ordinances. They are different throughout Georgia but generally state that dogs must either be confined to one’s premises, i.e., inside the house or in their yard. When they are off of their premises, they must be on a leash, under the control of someone able to control them. This means that the person who is controlling the dog has the physical ability to keep the dog away from other dogs and people if it gets aggressive. This also means that a muzzle is used if needed. When you are on someone else’s premises, and in the presence of their dog, the owner has a duty under Georgia law to protect you from their dog if it is a dangerous animal. This means a muzzle or putting it in a crate or locked room, so you are not exposed to the animal.

Dog bites are extremely frightening and leave both mental and physical scars. We have handled every kind of dog bite case imaginable, including dogs chasing and attacking runners, knocking down bicyclists, charging out of homes and attacking people on the street, etc. Homeowners insurance may or may not insure a homeowner. We will investigate insurance limits and, if necessary, the assets of the individual who is at fault, to see if there is money that can be collected from them directly when they have no insurance.