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While dogs are a man’s best friend, they do add risk to a household and present challenges when you shop for homeowners insurance if you’ve run into the dog breeds insurance blacklist.
Here’s how dog breeds can affect your homeowners insurance, including the specific types of aggressive dog breeds that might increase your premiums or limit coverage options.
Most homeowners insurance companies cover damages your pooch inflicts on other people or their property via liability coverage — the part of a homeowners insurance policy that applies if you’re held liable for property or bodily injury damage suffered by someone else. However, your dog’s breed can have a big impact on what that coverage looks like.
Insurers pay close attention to dog breeds because they want to minimize risk and lower the chances of having to pay out expensive liability claims.
Over her nearly 30 years working in the insurance industry, Deborah Turner has seen various dog breeds fall in and out of favor with insurers. Many factors determine which breeds are banned, said the president of Dean Insurance Agency, which specializes in canine coverage.
“It may be media driven, losses they have paid out on a certain breed, personal experience of underwriters, or reports about which breeds are biting,” Turner says.
Since insurers are always looking to minimize risk, certain breeds are more likely to be banned by homeowners insurance companies or face higher premiums, whether fairly or not. These are usually more “aggressive” and “dangerous” dogs that are more likely to cause costly damage if they bite. And this is largely based on statistics showing these breeds are involved in more bite incidents and severe injuries.
When insurers consider your pooch as aggressive and dangerous and include them on their dog breeds insurance blacklist, that means they either won’t cover your home at all or will issue you a policy but exclude coverage if your dog hurts someone in your home or damages their property. Here’s what you should know if you own a dog and are exploring homeowners insurance options.
Dog breeds insurance blacklist usually varies by carrier, but here are some of the most common dog breeds that homeowners insurance companies tend to restrict.
“Any dog breed can be aggressive,” says Dr. Courtnye Jackson, a veterinarian and founder of The Pets Digest. However, insurers consider these breeds high-risk and often restrict them since they’re statistically more likely to cause costly bites.
For example, Pit Bulls, Rottweilers, and Doberman Pinschers aren’t necessarily more aggressive than other dog breeds, but their physical strength and strong jaws can can result in more severe injuries when bites do occur.
Here’s a look at the stats behind dog attacks, how they influence liability coverage, and the role of BSL in shaping insurance policies.
The number of dog bite claims nationwide increased in 2023 to 19,062 from 17,597 in 2022 — an 8.3% increase, according to an analysis of homeowners insurance claims data by the Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I). And these liability claims related to dog bites and other dog-related injuries cost insurers $1.1 billion in 2023.
For these reasons, many insurers try to control costs by using breed lists to deny coverage for specific dog breeds. If you own a breed considered dangerous and are likely to increase your chances of filing your claim, you may face higher premiums or have your coverage denied altogether.
Breed-specific legislation (BSL) consists of laws that regulate or ban dog breeds that are believed to be dangerous to humans and other animals. Common applications of BSL include manditory muzzling and spaying/neutering. BSL can also allow insurance providers to enact discriminatory policies, including blacklists, against certain dog breeds.
While animal welfare and legal organizations, like the American Society for the Prevention and Cruelty to Animals, argue BSL is based on misinformation and does little to protect citizens, insurance industry associations, such as the American Property & Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA), defend breed lists and resist efforts to overturn the practice.
Whether you fall under any BSL regulations will depend on where you live, as some states have restrictions or outright bans against BSL.
If your current insurer excludes your pooch from homeowners insurance coverage, consider these alternatives.
Just because one homeowners insurance provider rejects your dog doesn’t mean another will, so shop around and compare coverage with multiple companies. Some insurers — including State Farm, Chubb, and USAA — accept even the most dangerous dog breeds.
Pet liability insurance is a solid option if you can’t find an insurance company to include your dog in coverage. It’s a specialized policy that covers injury or damage caused by any kind of dog.
Nearly 800,000 Americans need to see a doctor after being bitten by a dog yearly, and more than 17,000 insurance claims are filed because of dog bites. The average cost of those claims is nearly $50,000. If you have liability coverage and include your dog on your homeowners policy, it will cover the associated damages up to your purchased limit.
You could add it as an endorsement on your current home insurance policy or purchase it as a separate policy.
Getting proper insurance coverage is only one part of being a responsible pet parent. Training your dog, no matter its breed, is just as important.
“Start training early and recognize any signs of aggression early on so [you] can deal with them before it gets out of hand,” Jackson says. That way, you’ll reduce your dog’s perceived risk, potentially lower your insurance premiums, and hopefully never need to utilize your liability coverage.
And if you haven’t already, train your dog to get Canine Good Citizen certification from the American Kennel Club (AKC). Some insurers are more open to covering breeds they usually restrict if they have this certification.
Talk to insurance brokers and agents about dog-related coverage, including for bites or property damage. Brokers and agents often have insights into companies that may be more lenient with breed restrictions or offer specialized pet coverage. They can also help you understand the fine print so you’re aware of any limitations or requirements.
To find out if your dog’s breed is on the dog breeds insurance blacklist, check your insurance policy or give your insurer a call. You can also look online for breed-specific info.
Yes, you can still get homeowners insurance with an aggressive dog breed from insurers like State Farm or Turner’s that specifically sell canine liability policies.
To keep premiums low with a high-risk dog, consider enrolling your dog in obedience training, spaying or neutering to reduce aggression, and getting your dog AKC CGC certified.
Yes, some homeowners insurance companies that don’t restrict dog breeds include State Farm, Chubb, and USAA.
Yes, certain states such as New York, Nevada, and Illinois, have legislation limiting insurers from relying solely on a dog’s breed to determine homeowner’s liability coverage.
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