Dog Bite Injury Lawyer Boone County, MO
Dog Bite Injury Lawyer Boone County, MO. We love our pet dogs and may even go so far as to call them family members or honorary coworkers. A lot of us have dogs at home in Boone County, MO and interacting with any dog can bring us a lot of joy. However, dogs are animals and do not have the ability to verbally communicate to us how they feel or what they are thinking. Whether they felt threatened, were sick or for one reason or another were prompted to act on their instincts to attack, when a dog bites you, you should be compensated. Though we have a number of laws in Boone County and Missouri and recommendations responsible pet owners can follow to prevent dogs from attacking humans, but dog bites and dog bite injuries still happen in Boone County, MO. When you or someone you know becomes the victim of a dog bite, we hare here to help you recover fair compensation.
If your or someone you love has been injured in a dog bite incident, contact Combs Waterkotte today at (314) 900-HELP. Our Boone County, MO dog bite injury lawyers handle each case fervently and with great care and dedication. You did not deserve to be injured and you should not have to suffer the consequences on your own. Our laws in Missouri offer you a path for recourse to collect a complete financial recovery for the damages and losses you have experienced because of the attack, but for a chance to collect just compensation, you will likely need a reputable Boone County, MO dog bite injury lawyer fighting by your side. Our distinguished team of attorneys have the experience and resources to make sure you are made whole again and allowed to move forward from this experience. Review your Boone County, MO case with Combs Waterkotte for free today. Begin your recovery by contacting us now.
What compensation can my Boone County, MO dog bite injury lawyer help me receive?
Each dog bite injury case in the Boone County, MO area is different and it is normal to experience anxiety and uncertainly about your case after being injured by a dog. The amount in damages you could recover in your Boone County, MO dog bite case ranges anywhere from $10,000 for minor but demonstrable injuries to easily over $100,000 for bites that result in severe, long-term damage and expensive medical care. Remember, though, that to find out what kind of settlement you can expect to receive in your Boone County, MO dog bite case, speak to a Combs Waterkotte dog bite injury lawyer in Boone County, MO about your case. Your compensation depends, in addition to other factors, on the extent of the damages or losses you have experienced.
Damages you can recover in your Boone County, MO dog bite injury case include:
- Medical expenses
- Ambulance bill
- Emergency room fees
- Hospital stay costs
- Doctors’ bills
- Surgery
- Treatment costs
- Prescriptions
- Physical therapy, chiropractic, and other outpatient care
- Mental health counseling
- Physical pain
- Emotional and psychological suffering
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Lost wages
- Lost future earning capacity
- Loss of benefits
The final dollar amount you recover depends greatly on many factors, including whether or not you hire a lawyer in Boone County, MO. Remember that a dog bite injury lawyer in Boone County, MO like a member of the Combs Waterkotte team will only agree to represent you if they can add value to your case and help you recover more than you could by yourself. This includes the contingency-fee-basis on which we operate, which means that Combs Waterkotte will not bill you for anything unless your Boone County, MO dog bite injury lawyer wins your case. At that point, we accept payment through a percentage of your total settlement once you receive your payment. That means our experienced dog bite injury lawyers in the Boone County, MO area work on your case at no out-of-pocket costs to you. There is no reason not to speak to our Boone County, MO dog bite injury lawyer team about your case to find out if we can help.
How much is my case worth if I hire a dog bite injury lawyer in Boone County, MO?
The average dog bite injury settlement is about $40,000 for a “severe but typical dog bite injury”, while dog bites that leave disfiguring scars could bring closer to $100,000 and permanent disabilities caused by dog bites can settle for over $200,000.
Unfortunately, these numbers are not guarantees for your particular case outcome. In order to understand the complexities of your unique case and learn what to expect from your recovery, you need to talk to a dog bite injury lawyer in Boone County, MO about your case. Trust the Boone County, MO dog bite attorneys of Combs Waterkotte and contact us to review your dog bite injury case now.
Factors That Influence the Value of a Dog Bite Case
The settlement you receive in your dog bite case depends on factors like:
- The dog bite leaves visible scarring or disfigurement.
- Your injuries have caused permanent disability.
- You need emergency medical care due to your dog bite injuries.
- Your injuries require you to undergo surgery or receive other extensive medical care.
- You suffered psychological harm from the dog bite incident that required professional mental health treatment.
These are all facts of your case that your Combs Waterkotte Boone County, MO dog bite injury lawyer will investigate and prove without question. We dedicate our full resources to obtaining evidence, evaluating liability and building an infallible case to make sure you get an excellent result in your Boone County, MO dog bite injury claim.
In addition to the circumstances of the accident and the severity of your injuries, the total compensation your Boone County, MO dog bite injury lawyer can secure for you is also related to other factors, such as:
- Who is liable for the dog bite
- The insurance coverage policy limits
- The total economic losses you have suffered as a result of the bite, including the total cost of all of your medical bills
- How your dog bite injury lawyer calculates the value of your non-economic damages
- The ability of your dog bite injury lawyer to negotiate a settlement for your case
On average, settlements in dog bite attacks and other personal injury cases are around three times higher for victims who hire a dog bite injury lawyer for representation than for plaintiffs who attempt to settle their case on their own. Discover how Combs Waterkotte can help you collect a higher, more just settlement for your Boone County, MO dog bite injuries by reaching us at (314) 900-HELP today to ask an experienced Boone County, MO dog bite injury lawyer about your case.
Boone County, MO Dog Bite Injury Lawyer: Who Is Liable
To successfully collect a complete settlement that makes you whole after the losses you have suffered following a dog bite incident, you will need a dog bite injury lawyer in Boone County, MO you can trust to help you figure out who is legally responsible for the damages you have suffered and, thus, who to hold accountable for your suffering.
Liability in a dog bite or any personal injury case describes who is responsible for your damages. With a Combs Waterkotte dog bite injury lawyer in Boone County, MO, you have a professional who is well-acquainted with Missouri law and has first-hand experience with a variety of situations regarding liability in dog bites and other personal injury cases. We will make sure we hold the right people accountable and make sure they pay for the losses you have experienced.
In Missouri, Revised Statute Section 273.036 puts into effect a practice of strict liability in dog bite injury cases. Strict liabillity is a legal policy that names a party accountable — in this case, the dog owner — irrespective of their intention or whether there was fault. That means that your Boone County, MO dog bite injury attorney does not need to demonstrate that the owner of the dog that bit you was negligent or that they intentionally allowed the dog to attack you. To win your Missouri dog bite injury case, you only need to show that you were injured and it was the owner’s dog that injured you. In more certain terms, the Missouri statute lays out that the Boone County or Missouri dog bite owner is legally responsible for your injuries if:
- you were injured by a dog bite;
- you were on the property lawfully when you were bitten (in other words, you were not trespassing); and
- you did not provoke the dog to attack.
If you were bitten by a dog that you did not provoke and you were not trespassing, your Combs Waterkotte dog bite injury lawyer in Boone County, MO will work to get you a fair settlement in your strict liability claim against the owner of the dog, and most of the time it is the dog owner’s homeowners or renters insurance that pays out the settlement for your damages. However, you may have claims against other parties under other types of liability standards, too.
- Negligence: You may have a negligence claim if a person was negligent, either in their actions or failure to act, in upholding their duty of care to you. Someone who lets their dog roam the neighborhood freely or fails to crate their anxious dog when strangers or children visit their home could be seen as negligent and your Combs Waterkotte dog bite injury lawyer will diligently hold them accountable in a negligence claim. If a property owner or landlord was aware of but neglected to fix a broken fence and a tenant’s dog got out of the property and bit someone, the landlord may be negligent.
- Negligence per se: Negligence per se is when a party is legally liable by the act of breaking a law. Rather than proving that the defendant did not act with care as a reasonable person would, your Boone County, MO dog bite lawyer can show that the defendant is liable for your injuries by default because they broke a law that was meant to keep you safe. For example, some towns and municipalities have laws in place mandating that people keep dogs on leashes while off their own property or ban dogs from being on others’ properties without permission from the property owner. If the person looking after or responsible for the dog broke one of these rules and their dog bit you, you may have a case of negligence per se.
Who is responsible for my dog bite damages?
Because of the possibility of additional claims of negligence beyond Missouri’s strict liability policy, you may have a case against other defendants other than the owner of the dog. Depending on considerations such as the parties that were involved, where the bite happened, and what the parties in question did or did not do, your dog bite injury lawyer in Boone County, MO may identify additional responsible defendants in your Boone County, MO dog bite case, like:
- Landlords
- Stores
- Employers
- Government organizations
- Dog walkers
- Places of business where dogs are present, such as pet stores, dog daycare facilities, etc.
If you or someone you love were bitten by a dog and you suspect that someone beyond the owner is to blame, or that the owner has more blame than strict liability covers, act right away and speak to a dog bite injury lawyer in Boone County, MO about your case as soon as possible. Combs Waterkotte has a dedicated team of talented Boone County, MO dog bite injury attorneys ready to fight for your recovery and hold the right parties accountable. You did not deserve to be attacked or harmed, and you should be made whole through all legal remedies Missouri law provides. The legal team at Combs Waterkotte will get you a just recovery. Call us now at (314) 900-HELP.
Our Boone County, MO attorneys can help you seek justice in any type of personal injury or criminal case. Some of our practice area specialties include:
Dog Bite Injury Lawyer Boone County, Missouri: Talk to a Lawyer Today
After facing the unexpected tragedy of a dog bite injury, a dog bite injury lawyer in Boone County, MO with Combs Waterkotte will work hard to bring you justice. A dog bite is usually a traumatic experience, and the physical and psychological injuries it leaves can have a significant impact on your life. Give yourself a chance to receive the recovery you deserve by consulting with an accomplished Boone County, MO dog bite injury lawyer today.
As your dog bite injury lawyer, we make it our mission to secure just compensation for you after suffering the harm of something like a dog bite attack. After being bitten and injured by a dog, call Combs Waterkotte right away at (314) 900-HELP or reach us online to discover how we can help you with your case.