A federal court recently ruled that a Maine woman could not sue for damages under New Hampshire’s dog bite statute because she was not actually bitten by the dog that caused her accident, according to a recent article in the Nashua Telegraph.
The woman filed her lawsuit in federal court after suffering a New Hampshire motorcycle accident several months ago. She was riding her bike near Rochester when the Labrador retriever, which belonged to the son of a local business owner, bounded into the road, colliding with the woman and her motorcycle. The rider lost control of her motorcycle and crashed into a telephone pole, suffering serious motorcycle accident injuries. She sued the owner of the business under New Hampshire’s dog bite statute, which seeks to hold dog owners responsible for injuries caused by their pets.
However, the federal court ruled that the injured motorcyclist could not bring her case to trial. The court held that the dog’s actions were not “vicious or mischievous,†and so the New Hampshire dog bite law didn’t apply. The court also ruled that the motorcyclist couldn’t seek compensation from the business owner because his adult son, not the business owner himself, was the actual keeper of the dog.
Motorcycle accidents aren’t always straightforward. Claims for dog bites, defective products, or other types of negligence or carelessness can be involved in a motorcycle crash. At Tenn And Tenn, P.A., our experienced New Hampshire motorcycle accident attorneys carefully examine the details of each case we handle, and we strive to hold all potentially negligent parties responsible for their actions. To discuss your motorcycle accident claim with us, call our office today at (603) 614-5055 for a free and confidential telephone consultation.