Dog Bite Injury Claim: What to Do Before You Hire an Essex County Attorney
Anyone has the potential to be bitten by a dog in their life and these animals can attack a person for a variety of reasons. When you have experienced a bite, it will be vital that you seek out medical attention at once. The reason is that while even the smallest bite might seem like nothing, it could lead to serious health concerns down the road, including death in some extreme cases.
Other concerns that often arise from a dog attack will include psychological trauma and even mutilation that can result in loss of function in the body. If you have been attacked by a dog, first seek medical attention and then find an Essex County attorney to protect your fights.
What Are Your Rights in A Dog Bite Case?
Every state and even county will have their own unique laws when it comes to a person being attacked. While some states have a blanket statement that says any animal bite is at fault of the owner of the animal, others do require that there has to be knowledge of the animal is a danger to others and not having proper preventive measures in place to protect the public.
Some states also cover injury that covers injury that goes beyond dog bites. Personal injury law may cover your case if you experience a serious injury from a dog jumping on you and knocking you over or causing damage by clawing you during an attack. It is important that you speak with an Essex County attorney to give you an idea of what your legal rights are.
Important Steps to Take After an Attack
The first thing you need to do following an attack on you or your child will be to identify who the owner of the animal is and to ensure you know which dog attacked you. It is important that you are sure as many owners will claim their pet isn’t dangerous and that you are blaming the wrong animal.
Once you have this information, it is important to seek out medical assistance. Wounds can become infected and if a dog has rabies, treatment needs to be started as soon as possible. If there is serious injury, such as severe bleeding call 9-1-1 and try to stop any bleeding.
During this time, don’t make any statements or sign any documents at this time. If you do, it can become public record and be used against you. Some pet owners will have you give this information when you are upset and even insurance providers will step in for information that will be used against you. Instead, focus on the injuries and wait to give any formal statements until you have a lawyer in place.
The exception here will be the police. Their goal is to conduct an investigation that focuses on the facts and to have an unbiased report on file of what happened. It is important that you give as many details that pertain to the injury, what animal attacked you and who the owner was to the police. You will find that what is contained in the police report can potentially help you with your case later on.
Once you have received medical attention, you need to move forward by choosing a lawyer to help you to get the compensation that is owed to you. This should be enough to cover any financial losses and medical bills that occurred from the injury and to compensate for the pain and suffering that you experienced from the attack. The Essex County attorney you work with will be able to go over the full injury claim with you and help guide you through the process.
Of course, the best situation is to try to avoid encounters that could lead to bites to begin with. This means understanding the things that can lead to injury and avoiding provoking the animal into an attack. After all, if there is proof that your actions led to the animal attacking you, then you may not have an injury claim that the court will accept.
Other concerns that often arise from a dog attack will include psychological trauma and even mutilation that can result in loss of function in the body. If you have been attacked by a dog, first seek medical attention and then find an Essex County attorney to protect your fights.
What Are Your Rights in A Dog Bite Case?
Every state and even county will have their own unique laws when it comes to a person being attacked. While some states have a blanket statement that says any animal bite is at fault of the owner of the animal, others do require that there has to be knowledge of the animal is a danger to others and not having proper preventive measures in place to protect the public.
Some states also cover injury that covers injury that goes beyond dog bites. Personal injury law may cover your case if you experience a serious injury from a dog jumping on you and knocking you over or causing damage by clawing you during an attack. It is important that you speak with an Essex County attorney to give you an idea of what your legal rights are.
Important Steps to Take After an Attack
The first thing you need to do following an attack on you or your child will be to identify who the owner of the animal is and to ensure you know which dog attacked you. It is important that you are sure as many owners will claim their pet isn’t dangerous and that you are blaming the wrong animal.
Once you have this information, it is important to seek out medical assistance. Wounds can become infected and if a dog has rabies, treatment needs to be started as soon as possible. If there is serious injury, such as severe bleeding call 9-1-1 and try to stop any bleeding.
During this time, don’t make any statements or sign any documents at this time. If you do, it can become public record and be used against you. Some pet owners will have you give this information when you are upset and even insurance providers will step in for information that will be used against you. Instead, focus on the injuries and wait to give any formal statements until you have a lawyer in place.
The exception here will be the police. Their goal is to conduct an investigation that focuses on the facts and to have an unbiased report on file of what happened. It is important that you give as many details that pertain to the injury, what animal attacked you and who the owner was to the police. You will find that what is contained in the police report can potentially help you with your case later on.
Once you have received medical attention, you need to move forward by choosing a lawyer to help you to get the compensation that is owed to you. This should be enough to cover any financial losses and medical bills that occurred from the injury and to compensate for the pain and suffering that you experienced from the attack. The Essex County attorney you work with will be able to go over the full injury claim with you and help guide you through the process.
Of course, the best situation is to try to avoid encounters that could lead to bites to begin with. This means understanding the things that can lead to injury and avoiding provoking the animal into an attack. After all, if there is proof that your actions led to the animal attacking you, then you may not have an injury claim that the court will accept.