Bitten By A Dog On The Job? What You Need To Know
When you work a job where you have to lawfully enter people's property, for example, as an electric meter reader, garbage collector or delivery person, and you have been bitten by someone else's dog, here is what you need to know.
#1 Call For Emergency Help
If you were bitten by someone's dog, on their property, when you are on the job, the first thing that you should do is call for emergency help. This is the right move to make, even if you feel like you were not injured that seriously. Calling emergency services is the best way to ensure that you get the treatment that you need. Dog bites are serious, even if they do not seem that deep. Dogs carry a lot of bacteria in their mouth, and there could be serious consequences to even a minor dog bite.
Calling emergency also creates a series of witnesses to the event and the aftermath of the event. It provides you with someone to back-up the seriousness of the dog bites.
Calling 911 will also get the police to respond to the location. It is important to have the police respond so that they can make a report and also investigate what happened. Many jurisdictions take dog bites very seriously and have rules about how many bites a dog can make before they face serious consequences.
#2 Document The Scene
Next, you should try to document the scene. If you have a smartphone, you should use your phone to take photos of the bite. If you can, make sure that you take pictures of the scene. If the condition of the bite changes visually over time, be sure to document those changes as well.
Pictures of the outside of the house and the area where you were attacked are also valuable; they will help establish the scene. Take pictures of your work environment as well. For example, if you were there to deliver a package, take a picture of the package. If you were there to check the meter, take a picture of where the meter is located.
#3 Get As Much Information As Possible
Finally, you need to make sure that you get as much information as possible on the scene. Get the homeowner's name, address and phone number. You should also get their renter's insurance information and homeowner's insurance information. Generally, when you are bitten by a dog, the dog owner's insurance should cover your medical treatment.
Since you were injured on the job, your worker's compensation insurance should also provide you with medical care. All of the information that you collect at the scene of the accident and actions that you take, such as calling for emergency assistance and getting a police report, will help with your worker's compensation claim as well for your on-the-job dog-bite.
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