If you or someone you love suffered a severe or fatal injury due to a dog owner’s negligence, a Nebraska dog bite lawyer can help you seek financial awards. Call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm today at (800) 816-0755 to discuss your case with our legal team.
Dog Bites Can Cause Lasting Injuries
In many cases, dog bites cause only minor injuries that do not require emergency treatment. However, others can lead to serious illnesses, injuries, and even fatal complications. Rabies, a virus that ravages neurological functioning, presents a major concern in dog bite cases, especially if the victim did not know of the dog’s vaccination history. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), dogs can also carry a host of other diseases that can lead to anything from skin infections to serious illnesses in humans.
Injuries Caused by Dog Bites
The types of physical injuries caused by dog bites vary drastically depending on the age and size of the victim and the circumstances of the attack. Younger children, especially those aged 10 or under, make up a large number of dog bite victims, and they often suffer injuries to their faces and necks. Dog bites typically affect other areas of the body, particularly the lower arms, hands, groin area, and legs in older children and adults. According to MedlinePlus, some of the most common dog bite injuries include:
- Lacerations and puncture wounds
- Broken or crushed bones
- Torn tendons or ligaments
- Severe tissue damage
If you or your child suffered these or other injuries as the result of a dog owner’s negligence, A Nebraska dog bite lawyer can help you seek financial recovery. Contact Pintas & Mullins Law Firm today and our legal team will speak with you about your case.
Dog Bite Fatalities
According to the National Canine Research Council (NCRC), dog bite fatalities occur rarely with only 38 reported in the U.S. in 2018. Considering dog owners can prevent most bites, though, this number still seems exceedingly high. The NCRC points out factors that often contribute, either on their own in combination with others, to fatalities from dog bites. They include:
- Lack of an able-bodied person to intervene
- Unfamiliarity with the dog
- The owner’s failure to spay or neuter the dog
- The inability of the victim to fend off an attack due to their age or physical condition
- The owner’s failure to properly socialize the dog
- The owner’s abuse, neglect, or mishandling of the dog
If you lost a child, spouse, parent, or another family member in a fatal dog attack, a Nebraska dog bite lawyer can help you file your wrongful death claim.
Reasons Dogs Bite
The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) emphasizes that any dog of any size, sex, age, or breed can bite, and they do so as a response to something they do not like. Dogs often bite because they feel stressed, sick, afraid, or threatened, and sometimes they accidentally cause injuries during play.
This explains why many children suffer dog bite injuries, as they do not understand the idea of making a dog feel uncomfortable. The dog owner has a responsibility to encourage appropriate interactions between their dog and children or limit their access to one another to prevent bites.
For a free legal consultation, call (800) 816-0755
Nebraska Law Protects Dog Bite Victims
Nebraska Revised Statute 54-601 states, “Dogs are hereby declared to be personal property for all intents and purposes,” and that, “the owner or owners of any dog or dogs shall be liable for any and all damages that may accrue…to any person, other than a trespasser, by reason of having been bitten by any such dog or dogs.”
This law gives Nebraska dog bite victims the right to pursue legal action against the dog owner whose dog caused their injuries by filing a personal injury claim due to premises liability, which holds that property owners must cover the damages caused to victims who suffer an injury on or as a result of the at-fault party’s property. If you or a loved one suffered serious or fatal injuries after a dog bite, the owner of the dog holds liability for the financial losses related to the incident.
Nebraska Statutes of Limitations on Dog Bite Claims
In Nebraska, victims and their immediate family members can file premises liability claims against the at-fault party in their dog bite case. However, they have a limited amount of time, known as a statute of limitations, to settle a claim or file a lawsuit.
Victims seeking compensation for their own injuries can usually file a personal injury claim within four years of the date of the dog bite or the date that they discovered their injury, while families typically have up to two years to file a wrongful death claim for the loss of a loved one.
A Nebraska dog bite lawyer can determine how much time you have left to file a claim and get started on your case right away to help you avoid missing your opportunity to pursue legal action.
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Contact Pintas & Mullins Law Firm Today
Dog bites can have long-term effects on victims and their families, including physical pain, emotional trauma, and financial distress. You did not deserve the injuries you suffered, and you should not have to pay for someone else’s negligence.
The attorneys at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm can help by managing your case and seeking fair financial recovery on your behalf. We work on a contingency-fee-basis, so you do not owe us anything unless we achieve compensation in your favor. Contact us today at (800) 816-0755 to discuss your case with our legal team.
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