Dog Bite Claims Hit Record High
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Either dogs are getting feistier or their owners are. Last year, the number of dog bite claims increased almost 6 percent to 17,359, according to the Insurance Information Institute, breaking the record for number of claims set in 2003. With an average cost per claim of $27,862—up 45 percent over the past decade—those dog bites accounted for more than a third of all homeowners insurance liability-claim dollars paid out in 2013.
In some respects, these numbers are still relatively low. The CDC estimates that dogs bite 4.5 million people each year. (Children ages 5 to 9 and adult males are the most at risk.) The vast majority of bites don’t result in an insurance claim.