Is Ohio landlord liable for personal injury resulting from dog bite?
Posted by
Anneke KurtOctober 02, 2007 5:46 PMAs Toledo, Ohio personal injury attorneys, we see many cases involving dog bites that result in personal injury and permanent scarring. Below is Toledo, Ohio Attorney Dale Emch's Toledo Blade column "Legal Briefs," which discusses a landlord's liability in a potential pit bull attack.
Dear Dale: I recently learned that the man I rent a home to purchased a pit bull puppy. The lease allows him to have a dog and doesn't say that pit bulls aren't allowed. I want to know whether I'd be liable financially if the pit bull bit somebody and whether I can make my tenant get rid of the dog.ANSWER: Assuming that we're talking about a single-family home that does not share any common area with other property owners, I don't think you'd be liable for a dog-bite injury caused by your tenant's dog.
Under Ohio law, the owner, keeper, or harborer of a dog is liable for any injuries or damages caused by the dog, provided the person who was injured wasn't trespassing, attempting to commit a crime, or teasing the dog.
The question is whether a landlord can be construed as a harborer. Almost all of the case law I found says that landlords are not harborers of a dog if the tenant has exclusive possession and control of the property. And, in most situations, tenants are deemed to have possession and control of rental property during the lease period.
The equation changes where rental property has a common area such as a shared yard or shared hallway. If the bite happens in a common area, a landlord might be tagged as a harborer of the injury-causing dog.
So, given the facts as you've presented them, I think you'd probably be protected from liability. But why take the chance? I can tell you that based on the dog-bite cases our personal injury office handles, we'd look hard at suing the landlord. We do this to protect our clients because sometimes it's impossible to tell what liability the landlord might have until the case plays itself out a bit. Maybe the lease doesn't give the tenant exclusive possession and control of the property, maybe the landlord lives in the home, or maybe there's a common area. The point is that if your tenant's dog bites someone, there's a good chance you could get sued and the injured person would go after your insurance policy. Even if you're immune from liability, it would still be a hassle.
Speaking of insurance, landlords who might be liable should check their policies to see what they say about tenants owning dogs. If the policy won't cover the landlord for some reason, personal assets could be at risk.
You might consider asking your tenant to get rid of the pit bull even though the lease allows him to have a dog. You should also let him know that state law categorizes pit bulls as vicious dogs, which means they have to be confined in very specific ways such as in a locked pen with a top. Your tenant also must obtain liability insurance that provides at least $100,000 of coverage in the event the dog causes an injury or death. Lucas County Dog Warden Tom Skeldon, who has seen on numerous occasions the serious injuries pit bulls can inflict, aggressively pursues charges against pit bull owners who don't comply with the law.
Given that the lease allows your tenant to have a dog, you'd probably have a tough time evicting him just because he owns a pit bull. If you really want the dog out of your property, you might consider telling the tenant you don't intend to renew the lease after it expires. Regardless, you should think about changing the language of the lease.
To me, the decision would be easy, but everyone's tolerance for risk exposure is different. I just don't see much of an upside to renting property to people who own such potentially dangerous dogs.
Dale Emch practices law at the Charles E. Boyk Law Offices, LLC, in Toledo, Ohio. In his column, he will discuss general legal principles and answer readers' questions. Neither Mr. Emch nor The Blade present or intend his column to be taken as legal advice. Readers seeking legal advice should consult with an attorney. Readers should send their questions to Mr. Emch at demch@charlesboyk-law.com or Dale Emch, 520 Madison Ave., Suite 655, Toledo, OH 43604.