Investor · Cottage Grove, MN · Member since 2015 · 8 posts · 1 vote
I have a dilema. A potential renter has a pit bull and I'm a little nervous. What is my liability if I allow pets, and her dog bites someone? The unique thing is she is a Sheriff's deputy and has better credit than I'm used to receiving in this part of town. I'd really like to accept her, but the dog has me wondering.
The breed isn't the problem, It is jerky owners who make their dogs vicious. I highly doubt a deputy is that kind of dog owner. As long as your insurance company has no problem, she should be a good tenant. Of course, the dog may still damage your property (pet urine, chewing, etc). make sure you get a large enough deposit!
As a plaintiff's attorney, we would sue you and the tenant, with the expectation that the property owner is the one with the money and the insurance.
To echo what has already been said, make sure your insurer does not exclude this coverage. Even if it does not, expect that once the first claim is made against you, you will be excluded for dog bites after that, for this tenant or any other.
And even after (read: if) you lose insurance coverage, you will still be sued, except that it's a much larger headache, of course.
I should add that I personally do not like animals, so I have very little inclination to allow dogs on my properties (that I do not yet own ;) ). But personal injury lawyers see $$$ - they don't care if it's a dog or a broken step or a lose handrail, whatever.
Pit bulls kill an American every 17 days on average. They account for 82% of dog bite fatalities. Since 2008 half the fatalities are the owner. Dogsbite.org.
State Farm wishes they could roll back the no breed list, at this point they have to charge 20% higher for liability because of their increased dog bite claims. It is projected to be 50% by 2030. But as we say in Indiana, it's a bit like closing the barn door after the horses left.
If you move forward in renting, charge enough rent so that when your premium goes up 3-4 times after a dog bite claim you still are in the black.
I looked at that website. It's founded by a website designer who had been bitten by a "pit bull." I'm not saying that *everything* on her site is biased or incorrect, but the website author clearly is biased based on her own experience and has the proverbial bone to pick.
So are we all biased. My experience with these dogs is that yes, they are strong and some of them have been bred (by us humans) to have high prey drive. AND there are many dogs who show aggressive behavior that are not "pit bulls."
yes. You can be. Your insurance company will provide you with a list of animals they won’t cover. I was an ER nurse for years and I don’t care how many sweet stories you hear about pits. Multiple women mauled to death by their own pits this year plus one accross the street from my rental house was killed while cleaning a cage at a boarding house a few days ago. Small breed sent me the most bites at work but pits sent me the most vicious which means the most costly. The overwhelming majority of pit bites I had was owner breaking up their dogs fighting over food or dog biting a guest at house. All dogs can bite but last I checked a dachshunds (weeny dog) won’t cause 200,000 in surgical repair.
I would require a minimum of 250,000 dollar renters insurance policy. Put yourself as a interested party on the policy so if they cancel it you will be notified. get a umbrella policy at least a million dollars (should have a umbrella policy anyway)
You will most likely be involved in a lawsuit regardless simply because lawyers see you as the guy with deep pockets so they will go after you too. I personally don’t allow cats at all on my properties. I allow dogs up to 20 pounds. No attack type breeds at all. I don’t care how qualified the applicant is. Their profession isn’t a indicator of their personal behavior.
While I have pets I completely understand the damage pets can do and the risks. IMO lots of pet owners don’t.
We allow dogs but with the condition that the tenant has to submit proof from a vet that the dog has been spayed or neutered and they have to obtain renters insurance that includes coverage for their dog and provide proof of coverage. We also have homeowners insurance which covers all breeds of dogs to protect ourselves. Not all insurance companies will provide coverage for all breeds of dogs but some will. I would make sure you have such a policy first. As long as the owner is responsible having a dog can be an asset for a tenant since they tend to stay longer which means less turnover.
I see this post resurrected from when I posted over a year ago.
Update: I decided to rent to them after meeting the dog. It was fine, but every time I saw a news article about a pit bull attack I felt sick. They ended up having a kid, and buying a house. I let them break the lease a month early and leave on good terms. They were super nice people, and the dog was “one of the good ones”. However, going forward I’m not allowing large or dangerous breeds. Not worth it to me.
Pit bulls were bred by changing mytochondria to get dna that can endure pain, and horriblest ways imaginable. And for endurance same things were done to these man made creation perverse to nature. Some people snap, some dogs snap. If the dog is not on point to guard its turf, it has been bred out of it. If you own property and have paid insurance, you would not have this discussion as nearly 1/3 of all homeowners insurance claims are related to dog bites. In bad neighorhoods the insurance rate can triple, for pits it can be 3 times that. Legally its not a problem unless you know the dog is viscious. But many states allow a lien on property for any reason. That means court. Go without representation and get chivalrous toward pits and their owners. Or better yet read blogs from champions of how pits arent a problem. Some pits become airborne for faces, throats, genitals, or trusty leg or arm. They are lightning fast and good luck once they clamp down. Children are usually maimed more seriously. Yes not all dogs devour children. dobies, chows, any shepard, even setters, hounds, mutts and your rotts ad infinitum. Maybe to defray costs for dog owner or socialistic indoctrination pervades capitalism..then yes i agree the property owner should do their own way the way they want. Assuming liability for no reason doesnt sound like i want to participate in that deal.