Compulsory insurance for all dogs proposed by Govt. (Now ruled out)

[Moosey]

You'd take them to court for the damages, if they had insurance they'd refer it to that and they'd either make you an offer or be taken to court.

 

Not quite.

 

Dog bite claims are far from straight forward.

 

I could own a dog that comes out and bites your face clean off, but unless you can prove that I knew that the dog was likely to do it, you can say goodbye to a claim. Proof of knowledge of a tendency or propensity to bite is necessary under the Animals Act. Insurance won't change that.

 

99% of dog bite claims never make it anywhere near court, because insurers are fully aware of that.

 

As an aside, yes, house insurance should cover liability if a dog bites someone AND you can prove it's bitten before. The point of this, I suspect, is that house insurance isn't compulsory either.

 

Unless Mr Government is planning on making my job a lot easier by repealing that part of the Animals Act of course.

[willman]

A recent study carried out on 6,000 dogs and their owners found out 33 of the most aggressive dogs, and also those which have good temperaments. The study involved collecting data from two different groups. The first group consisted of 11 different breeds and the second was an online survey mainly involving owners, including 33 breeds. The conclusions from both groups were similar. It looked at the different types of aggression such as towards other dogs, towards strangers and towards owners. Some of the results were surprising, below are the top ten most aggressive breed:

 

1. Dachshunds

2. Chihuahua

3. Jack Russell

4. Australian Cattle Dog

5. Cocker Spaniel

6. Beagle

7. Border Collie

8. Pit Bull Terrier

9. Great Dane

10. English Springer Spanie

 

 

 

Can't find staffie or rottie on there.

[Cyclone]

I didn't realise that, so the owner could be prosecuted for the dog being out of control, but you couldn't win a claim for damages if they didn't know that it was likely to happen?

I suppose that protects owners from the random behaviour of their dog, but it also absolves them of responsibility for the behaviour of their dog, which I don't think is right.

 

Edit - this was in response to Moosey, not the list of aggressive dogs.

[Moosey]

I didn't realise that, so the owner could be prosecuted for the dog being out of control, but you couldn't win a claim for damages if they didn't know that it was likely to happen?

I suppose that protects owners from the random behaviour of their dog, but it also absolves them of responsibility for the behaviour of their dog, which I don't think is right.

 

Edit - this was in response to Moosey, not the list of aggressive dogs.

 

Exactly as you put it.

 

What's likely though is that a person wouldn't be prosecuted, unless it was a dangerous dog. If it was a dangerous dog, the claim would succeed. Most "non-dangerous" dogs would result in no prosecution, unless there was a history.

 

That act is the bane of our lives I can tell you.

 

Have a look for the case of Christopher Whippey. Tells you all about it, as it's recently been before the Lords, and it was confirmed.

[willman]

The agressive list is also provided by the blame claim chasers btw.

[Moosey]

A recent study carried out on 6,000 dogs and their owners found out 33 of the most aggressive dogs, and also those which have good temperaments. The study involved collecting data from two different groups. The first group consisted of 11 different breeds and the second was an online survey mainly involving owners, including 33 breeds. The conclusions from both groups were similar. It looked at the different types of aggression such as towards other dogs, towards strangers and towards owners. Some of the results were surprising, below are the top ten most aggressive breed:

 

1. Dachshunds

2. Chihuahua

3. Jack Russell

4. Australian Cattle Dog

5. Cocker Spaniel

6. Beagle

7. Border Collie

8. Pit Bull Terrier

9. Great Dane

10. English Springer Spanie

 

 

 

Can't find staffie or rottie on there.

 

Just to support this somewhat, I've probably seen 100 dog bite claims over the last 18 months. Mostly springer spaniels if I'm honest. Seen a couple, say 5 staffie dogs, no rottweilers. A lot of spaniels though.

[Moosey]

The agressive list is also provided by the blame claim chasers btw.

 

Or the people that try to help victims who've been bitten by dogs, out of no fault of their own. You started out well, then turned into a Sun headline. Well done.

[RobbyBrown]

Should all dogs have a Criminal Records Check?

 

This would be cheaper than (as quoted) up to £600 per annum. I believe the cost for a CRB is around £38, so why does the government not look at this option?

[Moosey]

Should all dogs have a Criminal Records Check?

 

This would be cheaper than (as quoted) up to £600 per annum. I believe the cost for a CRB is around £38, so why does the government not look at this option?

 

If you report a dog bite to the police, as you should, they have to keep records, so in a way, this already does exist.

[willman]

Or the people that try to help victims who've been bitten by dogs, out of no fault of their own. You started out well, then turned into a Sun headline. Well done.

 

Can't get it right all the time:hihi: Innocent until proven guilty even the dog.