Dog Bite Demand Letter - Alabama

DEMAND FOR SETTLEMENT - DOG BITE / ANIMAL ATTACK

STATE OF ALABAMA

[FIRM NAME]
Attorneys at Law
[Street Address]
[City, Alabama ZIP]
Telephone: [Phone]
Facsimile: [Fax]
Email: [Email]
Licensed in the State of Alabama

DATE: [Date]

VIA CERTIFIED MAIL, RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
AND FIRST-CLASS MAIL

[Adjuster Name / Dog Owner Name]
[Insurance Company Name / Address]
[Street Address]
[City, State ZIP]

RE: DOG BITE CLAIM - SETTLEMENT DEMAND
Our Client: [Client Full Name]
Date of Attack: [Date of Attack]
Location of Attack: [Address where attack occurred]
Dog Owner: [Dog Owner Name]
Dog Breed/Description: [Breed, Size, Color]
Claim Number: [If assigned]
Homeowner's Policy Number: [If known]

Dear [Recipient Name]:

This firm represents [Client Name] ("Claimant") concerning injuries allegedly sustained in an incident involving a [Breed] dog on [Date of Attack]. The currently available evidence identifies [Dog Owner Name] as the dog's owner. This letter states Claimant's settlement position based on the facts and legal routes selected below.

I. VERIFIED ALABAMA STATUTORY ROUTE

A. Alabama's Statutory Dog-Bite Liability (Ala. Code § 3-6-1)

Under Ala. Code § 3-6-1, if a dog without provocation bites or injures a person who is at a place where the person has a legal right to be, the owner is liable in damages — but only when the injured person is on property owned or controlled by the owner when the bite or injury occurs, or was immediately before on that property and was pursued from it by the dog. Section 3-6-2 defines when a person is lawfully on the owner's private property, including specified public-duty, postal, meter-reading, utility-service, and express-or-implied invitation circumstances.

Mitigation of damages (Ala. Code § 3-6-3): The owner may plead and prove a lack of knowledge of any circumstances indicating that the dog was vicious, dangerous, or mischievous. If the owner proves that statutory mitigation, liability is limited to the injured person's actual expenses resulting from the bite or injury.

B. Statutory Route Checklist

Use the §§ 3-6-1 through 3-6-3 route only after counsel confirms each fact:

• ☐ the defendant owned the dog;
• ☐ the dog bit or otherwise injured the claimant;
• ☐ the incident occurred without provocation;
• ☐ the claimant was at a place where the claimant had a legal right to be;

• ☐ the claimant was on property owned or controlled by the owner when the
  incident occurred, or was immediately before on that property and was
  pursued from it by the dog;

• ☐ if private property is involved, the facts fit the applicable § 3-6-2
  description; and

• ☐ the demand addresses any § 3-6-3 lack-of-knowledge mitigation evidence.

Evidence supporting owner identity: [________________________________]

Evidence supporting location and property control: [__________________]

Evidence supporting lawful presence and lack of provocation: [________]

Known § 3-6-3 mitigation evidence: [__________________________________]

C. Separate Ordinance, Premises, or Other Theory

Do not add a leash-law, landlord, premises, keeper, or failure-to-confine
theory until counsel identifies and verifies its current official authority,
covered person, required facts, defenses, and available remedy:

• Current ordinance or duty source: [________________________________]
• Covered defendant and conduct: [________________________________]
• Notice, control, breach, and causation facts: [________________________________]
• Whether the authority creates a civil remedy or is only evidence of breach: [________________________________]

II. PRESERVATION OF EVIDENCE NOTICE

Claimant requests preservation of the following specifically identified evidence relating to the incident. The recipient should promptly identify any item it does not possess or control and any preservation burden that requires coordination:

☐ The animal itself (do not destroy, euthanize, or transfer without notice)
☐ All veterinary records for the animal
☐ Vaccination records, including rabies vaccination
☐ Animal licensing and registration documents
☐ Prior bite reports or complaints
☐ Any "dangerous dog" or "vicious dog" designations
☐ Communications with animal control
☐ Homeowner's or renter's insurance policies
☐ Training records for the animal
☐ Proof of confinement measures

This request does not assert that a demand letter alone creates a preservation duty, an adverse inference, a sanction, or an independent claim. Counsel should separately analyze party status, control, pending or anticipated litigation, any agreement or undertaking, the specificity of the request, and responsibility for preservation costs before stating a legal consequence.

III. STATEMENT OF FACTS

A. The Attack

On [Date of Attack], at approximately [Time], our client was [describe activity - e.g., "walking on the public sidewalk in front of [Address]," "visiting the dog owner's residence as an invited guest," etc.].

At that time, [Dog Owner Name]'s [Breed] dog [describe how attack occurred - e.g., "escaped from the owner's property," "was off-leash in violation of local ordinance," etc.].

The dog attacked our client viciously and without provocation. [Describe the attack in detail].

B. Ownership, Location, and Knowledge Facts

Describe the evidence concerning ownership of the dog, ownership or control of
the location, the claimant's presence, prior events, complaints, warnings,
confinement measures, and what the recipient knew and when. Do not state a
separate legal consequence unless counsel has verified the governing theory.

[____________________________________________________________]

C. No Provocation

Our client did absolutely nothing to provoke this attack. [He/She] was peacefully and lawfully present at the location.

IV. CONTRARY FACTS AND DEFENSE REVIEW

The presently available evidence supports the following factual positions,
subject to contrary evidence and counsel's route-specific defense analysis:

☐ [He/She] was lawfully present at the location
☐ [He/She] did not approach, touch, or interact with the dog
☐ [He/She] did not engage in any provoking behavior
☐ [He/She] exercised all reasonable care
☐ The attack was entirely unprovoked and without warning

Known contrary facts or anticipated defense evidence: [________________________________]

Counsel's verified defense analysis and authority: [________________________]

V. INJURIES AND MEDICAL TREATMENT

A. Description of Injuries

The attack caused severe injuries to our client, including:

Bite Wounds:
☐ [Location] - [Description]
☐ [Location] - [Description]

Secondary Injuries:
☐ Soft tissue damage
☐ Nerve damage
☐ Infection risk
☐ Scarring and disfigurement

Psychological Injuries:
☐ Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
☐ Cynophobia (fear of dogs)
☐ Anxiety and panic attacks

B. Medical Treatment

[Detail emergency treatment, follow-up care, surgeries, mental health treatment]

C. Prognosis

[Detail permanent conditions, ongoing treatment needs, future care requirements]

VI. DAMAGES

A. Medical Expenses

B. Future Medical Expenses

C. Lost Wages

D. Pain and Suffering

Claim the following only to the extent supported by admissible evidence, causation, and the selected liability route:

• Physical pain and suffering
• Mental anguish
• Emotional distress
• Permanent scarring and disfigurement
• Loss of enjoyment of life

E. Alabama Damages Review

Do not assume that one cap rule fits every defendant or claim. Screen governmental, medical, wrongful-death, intentional-tort, class, insurance, and other claim-specific limits before stating an available amount.

Punitive damages are not created by Ala. Code §§ 6-11-20 or -21. If an existing cause of action permits them, § 6-11-20 generally requires clear and convincing evidence that the defendant consciously or deliberately engaged in oppression, fraud, wantonness, or malice. Section 6-11-21 supplies different base limitations for physical-injury, small-business, and other covered actions; requires its fixed dollar sums to be CPI-adjusted at three-year intervals; and excludes wrongful-death and intentional-infliction-of-physical-injury actions from its cap. Counsel must calculate the current adjusted amount and apply every subsection before including punitive damages in this demand.

F. Summary of Damages

VII. SETTLEMENT DEMAND

A. Demand Amount

Based on the liability evidence, defenses, injuries, and damages described above, Claimant demands:

$[DEMAND AMOUNT]

B. Time for Response

Counsel-selected response date: [Date and time]

Counsel must calendar all filing dates independently of this drafting
selection and must add any intended acceptance, withdrawal, release, or
insurance term expressly.

VIII. STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS

Under Ala. Code § 6-2-38(l), the general limitations period for an action for injury to the person or rights of another, not arising from contract and not otherwise enumerated, is two years. Counsel must determine accrual, claimant capacity, tolling, defendant identity, service, and any more specific statute, then calendar the actual deadline independently of this letter.

Date of Attack: [Date]
Counsel-calculated filing deadline: [________________________________]

IX. DOCUMENTATION ENCLOSED

☐ Medical records and bills
☐ Photographs of injuries
☐ Police/Animal Control report
☐ Witness statements
☐ Employment records
☐ Prior incident documentation
☐ HIPAA authorizations

X. CONCLUSION

The evidence identified in this letter supports Claimant's selected statutory
route as follows: [briefly connect each required fact to its evidence]. Any
additional theory must be separately researched and approved by counsel.
Claimant has sustained the documented injuries and losses summarized above.

If the matter is not resolved, Claimant will evaluate the appropriate filing
route and all available claims and defenses. Counsel will calendar every
deadline independently of the settlement-response date.

We urge you to resolve this matter promptly.

Respectfully submitted,

[FIRM NAME]

By: _________________________________
[Attorney Name]
Alabama State Bar Number [Number]
Attorney for [Client Name]

ENCLOSURES: [List]

cc: [Client Name]
[File]

ALABAMA-SPECIFIC PRACTICE NOTES

• Statutory route: Ala. Code § 3-6-1 addresses owner liability for a bite or injury without provocation in the location circumstances the section specifies; § 3-6-2 supplies the chapter's private-property lawful-presence descriptions, and § 3-6-3 supplies the lack-of-knowledge mitigation route.
• Other theories and defenses: This template states no common-law, keeper, landlord, premises, ordinance, or contributory-negligence rule. Research and ground any such theory before adding it.
• General two-year period: Section 6-2-38(l) supplies a general two-year period for covered personal-injury actions, but counsel must calculate the actual deadline and any exception.
• Damages: Apply claim- and defendant-specific limits. Sections 6-11-20 and -21 do not create punitive damages, use different routes and exceptions, and require periodic CPI adjustment of fixed dollar limits.
• Local Ordinances: Research applicable municipal leash laws and dangerous dog ordinances.

This template must be reviewed and customized by an Alabama-licensed attorney before use.