St. Louis Dog Bite Lawyer

Do I need a lawyer after a dog bite?

A dog bite seems like a straightforward claim. Our decades of experience have taught us there’s no such thing.

Treatment and recovery from a severe dog bite can quickly add up to tens of thousands of dollars, before even considering the impact of pain and suffering.

Insurance companies are in the business of keeping payouts low. They routinely undervalue claims, particularly if they think you won’t fight back.

Their goal is to offer you as little as possible and pressure you into accepting.

As soon as you’ve hired a personal injury lawyer, calls and harassment from insurance companies stop. All negotiations and paperwork are routed through us, allowing you to recover in peace.

How Fernandez Law helps dog bite victims

Fernandez Law can help you avoid innocent mistakes that could undercut your claim, like saying or signing the wrong thing.

We conduct our own thorough, independent investigation of the incident, gathering evidence that keeps insurers from hiding the real story.

Insurers soon learn we don’t do quick settlements. We prepare every case as though it’s going to trial. This alone often convinces them to skip low-ball offers and negotiate fairly.

“Gonzalo Fernandez is a great attorney. He works hard for his clients and always keeps their best interest in mind. He returns phone calls and keeps appointments, it's never a runaround with him. Gonz is extremely personable and friendly. He has extensive knowledge of the law and he uses that expertise to do an impeccable job for his clients.” – D’Andre O’Neal

Understanding dog bite claims in Missouri

Missouri is a strict liability state for dog bites. That means a dog owner is responsible for your injury:

• Whether or not the dog has bitten anyone before
• Whether or not the dog has shown signs of aggressiveness before
• Whether or not the owner knew the dog has a history of biting or aggressive behavior

Under the law, a dog owner can be fined up to $1,000 by the state when their dog bites someone. This is a criminal penalty and doesn’t affect your civil claim.

The dog owner does not have to be charged or convicted under the criminal statute for you to file a claim.

What you need to prove your dog bite claim

In Missouri, you need three elements to support your claim: possession, lack of provocation, and legal right to be on the premises

Possession. To hold a person responsible for a dog bite, you must prove they either owned the dog or they were in possession of the dog at the time the bite occurred.

Lack of provocation. If you hit, assaulted, or cornered the dog, the defendant could claim you provoked it to bite. Under the law, touching a dog is not provocation, and neither is coming near a dog or its owner.

Legal right to be on the premises. You can bring a lawsuit if you were bitten by a dog on public property. You also have grounds to sue if you were legally on private property, for example as a guest or a customer. If you were trespassing on private property, the defendant can use that in their defense.

You do not have to prove that the dog has a history of aggression or that the owner should have known it might bite someone.

You also do not have to prove the owner was in violation of any laws, such as leash laws.

What to do after a dog bite

DO:

• Immediately seek medical treatment. Even minor injuries carry a risk of infection, and medical records are essential to support your claim.
• Gather evidence. The longer you wait, the more difficult this becomes.
  • Take photos of the injury, the scene of the attack, and the dog, if it is safe to do so.
  • Get contact information from any witnesses to the bite.
• Report the bite to the proper authorities. In St. Louis, this is Animal Care and Control. Outside the city, report it to local police and animal control. Their reports further back up your claim.
• Contact Fernandez Law for a free consultation before talking to any insurance companies, including your own.

DON’T:

• Don’t make any statements that could imply the bite was your fault.
• Don’t post about the incident on social media.
• Don’t give any statements or sign any paperwork for insurance company employees or their lawyers.

What compensation can I get after a dog bite?

A personal injury claim can result in three kinds of damages: economic, non-economic, and punitive.

Punitive damages are awarded by the court as a deterrent to continued negligence, and can’t be negotiated in a settlement.

Economic damages are tangible, provable costs to be reimbursed. They might include:

• Medical bills
• Lost wages for time off work
• Future lost income if the injury prevents you from returning to your job
• Non-medical costs such as occupational therapy
• Damaged property

Non-economic damages are intangible, but no less important. They include such things as:

• Pain and suffering
• Disfigurement
• Psychological trauma

What’s a dog bite claim worth?

There is no formula for calculating what your claim might be worth. The amount of damages you could win is influenced by a number of factors, including:

• The severity of the injury
• Long-term impacts
• Lost income
• Insurance policy limits

Your best course of action is to talk with an experienced attorney. We’ll review the facts of your case and give you a realistic view of what you could expect from a claim.

The consultation is free. If you decide to move forward with a claim, our fee is taken as a percentage of your award, so there is no cost until we win.

Who is responsible when a dog bites someone?

In Missouri, a dog’s owner is liable for any damage their dog causes, including damages to property and injury to people.

Missouri is a strict liability state, which means the owner is legally responsible even if the dog has never been aggressive before or if the owner doesn’t know the dog’s bite history.

A person in possession of a dog they don’t own can also be held liable for a bite. This includes anyone temporarily responsible for a dog, such as dog walkers or dog sitters.

What if a dog bite victim was partly to blame?

Missouri is a comparative fault state. That means if you were partly to blame for your injury, you can still sue, but your damages are reduced.

For example, if you were 50% to blame for the bite, you would be awarded 50% of the judgment amount.

In a dog bite claim, insurers are likely to argue the victim was trespassing or provoked the dog in some way, because that pushes some of the liability onto you.

Fernandez Law conducts our own thorough, independent investigation to prevent insurers from getting away with arguing exceptions that aren’t true.

What if I was bitten by a dog at work?

Compensation options are more limited for people who choose to work with dogs, such as groomers, dog trainers, and vet techs. The law assumes that these workers voluntarily accept that their job carries an inherent risk of being bitten.

These workers may have limited options to sue dog owners, but can still claim worker’s compensation. You should talk to an attorney to make sure you explore all the avenues available to you.

Many people bitten by dogs in the course of their work did not choose to take on that risk. Delivery drivers, utility workers, landscapers, and others whose work routinely takes them onto private property don’t work with dogs, but are still at heightened risk of bites.

In 2024, the U.S. Postal Service alone recorded 47 dog bites, making St. Louis City one of the Top 5 in the nation for dog attacks on mail carriers.

People who are bitten in the course of their job, but whose job does not inherently include interacting with dogs, can seek full compensation for their injury. They can also claim a separate worker’s compensation claim in the same incident.

Schedule your free consultation

If you or someone you love was bitten by a dog, contact us. There is no cost to consult with our team about your case and your options.

If you have a case, you are under no obligation to move forward unless you want to. If you hire us to represent you, there’s no fee unless we win.