Isle of Wight County Dog Bite Lawyer
If you've been injured by a dog in Isle of Wight County, you should know the laws and regulations concerning animal attacks—and your rights after such an event.
To help protect residents and visitors against dangerous animal attacks, the county has put several regulations in place:
- Dogs are not allowed to run at large in the county, unless they are in a district zoned as a Rural Agricultural Conservation (Sec. 3-18).
- A “dangerous dog” is defined as one that has bitten, attacked, or injured another person or animal. If a dog is classified as dangerous, as a result of an attack, the owner is required to notify the local animal control authority (Sec. 3-23).
What to do After a Dog Attack
- Seek medical attention immediately. You do not know whether or not the animal has been vaccinated against rabies. Even if they have, you are still at risk for infection.
- Report the incident by calling the Isle of Wight County's Animal Services Division at (757) 365-6318.
- Take photos. Be sure to take photos of your initial injuries and throughout the healing process. Should you decide to file a claim, this will become important evidence for your case.
- Contact a Virginia dog bite lawyer.
Compensation for Dog Bite Victims
Depending on the circumstances of your situation, you may be entitled to the following damages:
- Pain and suffering: This is the right to compensation for physical pain and suffering and mental anguish you have suffered and could possibly endure in the future.
- Loss of Earnings: You are entitled to recover for the loss of earnings which you suffered from your injuries.
- Future Loss of Earnings: If your injuries have prevented you from your ability to earn income in the future, you can recover damages for the value of the reduction in earning capacity with reasonable probability which will occur in the future.
- Disfigurement: If the injury causes scarring or other unsightly marks, the victim is entitled to recovery for the disfigurement. Because these injuries are often in very visible places, victims are often very self-conscious of their appearance.
- Children are frequently bitten in the facial region and require plastic surgery.
- Medical Expenses: Dangers include any sort of medical expenses that a victim has had to pay for at a hospital, clinic, or to a pharmacy.
- Wrongful Death of a Loved One: Fatal dog attacks don’t happen very often, but when they do occur, they’re always incredibly tragic. No one ever expects to lose a loved one in such a violent way. The Virginia wrongful death statute allows certain family members of the victim to file a claim on the behalf of the deceased.
No Legal Fees Unless We Win
Our Virginia dog bite attorneys operate under a no fee promise. This means that you are not responsible for any legal fees unless we win or settle your case.
Virginia Dog Bite Lawyer
Our attorneys are available to assist all Isle of Wight County residents including: Smithfield, Windsor, Battery Park, Benns Church, Burwell's Bay, Carrollton, Carrsville, Central Hill, Indika, Isle of Wight, Lawson, Mogart's Beach, Raynor, Rescue, Rushmere, Stott, Walters, Wills Corner, and Zuni.
Owners have a strict responsibility to keep their dogs safely contained, and that responsibility is all-the-more important if the dog is found to be dangerous or vicious. Negligent dog ownership has no excuses—if your dog is a threat to others, you must ensure that it has no chance to harm anyone.
My Virginia-based personal injury law firm specializes in dog bite and dog attack cases. My lawyers and I know the rules, the regulations, and the laws surrounding dogs and dog attacks, and we know how to fight for you in order to win you the legal redress to which you are entitled. Nobody should have to suffer because a dog owner should have known better.