Although they can be man’s best friend, dogs can also cause serious injuries if they attack and bite or jump up and push a person down. According to the Centers for Disease Control, more than 800,000 people seek medical treatment due to dog bites each year in the United States, and young children are the most at risk. Dog owners should be familiar with the responsibilities and liability that come along with owning a dog.
Under Michigan law, dog owners have strict, or automatic, liability if their dog bites a person who was on public property or lawfully on private property and did not provoke the dog. The owner is unavoidably liable even if the dog had not shown any signs of viciousness prior to the bite. In many cases, a person’s homeowners’ insurance may cover damages from a dog bite.
A dog owner may also be liable for negligence if they know about a dog’s dangerous propensities or are negligent in failing to control/restrain the animal in a situation where it can be reasonably expected that injury could occur. A dog owner who owns their home can also be responsible for injuries if they know that their dog is dangerous and fail to warn or protect visitors they invite onto the property from harm.
What you do in the aftermath of a dog attack can have a large effect on both your medical prognosis and your ability to recover fair compensation. Here are some practical steps you can take to protect both your health and your rights:
Finally, contact Gruel Mills for a free consultation with a dog bite attorney in Michigan.
Unlike many other states, Michigan doesn’t have a “one free bite rule.” Even if this was the dog’s first incident, the owner is still liable, with very limited exceptions. The law focuses on the act itself, not the dog’s past behavior.
Yes, but not under Michigan’s specific dog bite law. If a dog knocks you over, chases you, or causes an accident through aggressive or uncontrolled behavior, you can pursue a negligence claim. Unlike in dog bite cases, which operate under a legal theory called strict liability, you must show that the owner was negligent, meaning they did not handle their dog with appropriate care. For example, ignoring leash laws or allowing a known aggressive dog to roam freely could meet the legal standard of negligence.
In most cases, yes. Both homeowners’ and renters’ insurance policies often cover injuries caused by dogs, even if the bite happens away from the owner’s property. However, coverage varies by policy, and some insurers exclude certain breeds. A personal injury lawyer from Gruel Mills can review the dog owner’s insurance details and handle communication with the carrier on your behalf.
Provocation is one of the few valid defenses under Michigan’s dog bite law. “Provocation” generally means an intentional act that would cause a normal dog to react aggressively: hitting, teasing, cornering it, attacking the owner, and similar behaviors. Accidentally stepping on a dog’s tail usually doesn’t count as provocation, but the details matter in each case.
It depends on your specific case. You may recover compensation for your:
Children often need additional care for visible scars or counseling for lasting fear or anxiety.
To schedule a free, no-obligation evaluation of your dog bite claim with one of our experienced attorneys, please contact us online or call us. We handle dog bite cases on a contingency basis, which means you do not have to pay for our services unless we recover money for you.
