PEI Dog Bite Lawyers

Prince Edward Island has a Dog Owners Act that makes an owner liable for a bite, and that matters to a bite claim. The Act prohibits letting a dog run at large and makes the owner liable for damages when the dog bites, attacks or injures a person or animal. A PEI dog bite lawyer pleads the Act alongside the common law, collects from the owner’s home insurance, and sues within two years.

The Limit Is Two Years, Postponed for a Child

Section 2(1)(d) of the Statute of Limitations, RSPEI 1988, c S-7 gives two years from the bite. A child’s claim is postponed until adulthood, which lets a family wait for a facial scar to mature before valuing it. The evidence does not wait. The dog control officer’s report, the owner’s admissions and the photographs of the wound in the first week are the case.

The Dog Owners Act and Scienter Make the Owner Liable

The Dog Owners Act, RSPEI 1988, c D-13.01 and the municipal dog control bylaws in Charlottetown, Summerside and Stratford set the rules an owner has to follow. A dog off the owner’s property must be under control, and a dog that has bitten can be ordered destroyed. A breach is strong evidence of negligence. The common law adds scienter. An owner who knew the dog was dangerous is liable without proof of carelessness. Where the bite happened on the owner’s property, the owner’s liability is determined under the Dog Owners Act, RSPEI 1988, c D-13.01 and not under the Occupiers’ Liability Act.

What a PEI Dog Bite Lawyer Recovers

Pain and suffering. Scarring, and the revision surgery a growing child will need. Infection and nerve damage in a hand. Counselling for the fear that follows. Lost income. No cap applies. Health PEI recovers its cost of care inside the claim. The owner’s homeowner’s or tenant’s liability coverage pays, which is why a claim against a neighbour or a relative is a claim against an insurer.

Small Bites Go to the Small Claims Section and Serious Ones to the Supreme Court

A claim within the Small Claims Section’s limit can go there. A bite that needed surgery or left a scar goes to the Supreme Court of Prince Edward Island. Most settle with the owner’s insurer once the medical evidence and the scar photographs are complete.

The Dog Was on a Leash When It Bit Me. Is the Owner Still Liable?

A leash controls only where the dog is. An owner who let a dog they knew to be aggressive get within reach of a child is negligent, leash or not.

The Owner Is My Sister.

Her home insurer pays the claim, and she does not pay it personally. Families bring these claims because a child’s scar is compensated once or not at all.

Will the Dog Be Destroyed If I Claim?

That decision belongs to the municipality under the bylaw, and it is made separately. A civil claim asks for money and nothing else.

Was I Trespassing on the Owner’s Driveway?

A visitor with a lawful reason to be there, whether a delivery, a neighbour or a child fetching a ball, can claim against the owner for a bite on the premises under the Dog Owners Act.

Read the firm’s dog bite guide. Past results appear on the results page.

No Fee Unless the Claim Resolves

The first call is free and a lawyer takes it. There is no fee unless the claim resolves. Contact the firm, or read what the firm can do.