Home Insurance and Your Dog

Man's best friend could cost you thousands in lawsuits and high home insurance premiums if you’re not careful.

The Insurance Information Institute states that in 2005, dog bites cost the property and casualty insurance industry about $317.2 million. With a figure like that, you can believe that insurance companies take a good look at what kind of dog you have on your property.

Insurers are more concerned about some breeds of dogs than others. If you have more than one of these breeds, a home and renters insurance company may charge you extra.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention listed the following breeds as causing the most fatalities from 1979 to 1980: Pit Bull, Rottweiler, German Shepherd, Husky, Malamute, Doberman Pinscher, Chow Chow, Great Dane, and Saint Bernard.

Before getting a new dog, you should check with your insurance agent or company to see if it's a breed that could raise your premium. In addition, you should take the following steps to decrease the chance that your beloved Fido would bite someone. The Insurance Information Institute suggests that you spay or neuter your dog, actively train and socialize your dog with people and other animals, avoid playing games like tug-of-war with your dog that might encourage him to be aggressive, and stay alert in a situation when you don’t know how he will react. You want to be sure that you can maintain control of your dog at all times.

You might argue that a good guard dog provides extra security for the home, and having a dog should reduce your insurance premiums. But the fact is that insurance companies weigh liability risks very carefully, and at present a dog is considered to increase risk, not decrease it.