What Damages Can I Claim After a Dog Bite Injury?

If a dog bite injures you, you can seek compensation for the losses with a personal injury claim. New Jersey holds dog owners strictly liable for the injuries their pets cause when they bite. These claims are legally complex, and having an experienced New Jersey dog bite injury attorney in your corner from the beginning can significantly affect your settlement amount.

New Jersey and Strict Liability

In the State of New Jersey, dog owners are held strictly liable for the injuries their dogs inflict on others when they attack. This means that you won’t need to prove the dog owner’s negligence in the matter if each of the following applies to your situation:

• You were on public property or legally on private property when attacked
• If you didn’t purposefully provoke the dog’s aggression

Your Medical Bills

Dog bites can be especially vicious and dangerous, which translates to steep medical bills that are likely to be ongoing. Dogs have powerful jaws that rip, crush, and tear the skin and underlying flesh, muscle, and tendons, and as a result, victims are vulnerable to all the following:

• Immense pain that can lead to long-term pain management
• Slow recoveries
• Serious infections
• The need for highly involved surgeries – especially when a hand or the face is injured
• If you need extensive follow-up care, including additional surgeries as well as occupational and physical therapy

Your Lost Income

While your medical bills pile up, your earnings could also take a serious hit, which puts you at even greater financial risk. If your bite injury affects your ability to do your job or if it derails the career path you’ve established for yourself, your losses will be even more considerable. Because career and identity are often intertwined, losses in this category can also have an emotional impact.

Physical and Emotional Pain and Suffering

The physical and emotional pain and suffering you experience in the wake of a terrifying dog attack is just as real as your financial losses are. Ultimately, these non-economic losses can be the most challenging to overcome. Victims of dog bites often experience PTSD-like symptoms that can include all the following:

• An intense fear of dogs that can extend to a fear of being outside
• Heightened anxiety
• Severe mood swings
• Difficulty concentrating
• Sleep disturbances that can include nightmares

Discuss Your Claim with an Experienced Dog Bite Injury Attorney

Philip A. DiBartolo, Jr. offers dedicated dog bite injury legal assistance when you need it most. We are committed to using all measures necessary to negotiate a just settlement on your behalf. To learn more about what we can do to help you, please don’t hesitate to contact us online or call 215-874-8553 today.