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Dog Bites Postal Worker No Joke

by | May 1, 2018 | Allen A. Ritchie

Allen's Answers

Dog Bites

If you want to get your mail, make sure your dog doesn’t bite the mail carrier. This seems like common sense, but you may be surprised how often it still happens.

Mobile is the second worst Alabama city for biting these federal employees with 5 in 2017. If you are interested, Birmingham had 6 and Huntsville and Montgomery both had 3. You probably don’t want to deliver mail in Houston, Texas, they had 71.

You can have real legal problems. First, you have injured a federal employee in the line of his or her duty. Though unlikely, it can be argued this is like tackling a Secret Service agent who is protecting the President.

The injured worker is entitled to recover. Though he or she has health insurance and other benefits, it has been my experience that the carrier will be pressured by supervisors to go after you to pay back those medical and sick day expenses.

You will probably first turn to you homeowner’s insurance. I suggest you check that policy right now. Some insurance companies are writing out bites by pets. Other companies are exempting specific breeds. The reason is simple: dog bites account for roughly one-third of all homeowner’s insurance claims.

Here are some general rules to protect you and the mail carrier:

  • If you are accepting a package, put the dog in a separate room before you open the door.
  • Don’t let a child hold the dog while you open the door. A 100 pound, charging dog cannot be stopped by an 8-year-old kid.
  • Don’t let the mail carrier hand your child a package. This can be perceived by the dog as an aggressive act.

If you need one more good reason to protect your mail carrier, try this:  if you provide an unsafe environment, the post office can require you to go to the post office to pick up all your mail.

If you are hurt by a dog bite, slip and fall, traffic accident or other personal injury, you can talk to us at the Law Firm of Eiland and Ritchie for free. We want to help you get back on your feet.

Also join us on NBC 15 LawCall here in Mobile every Sunday night at 10:30 right after the news. We will take your calls live.

Allen Ritchie

Alabama personal injury lawyer

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