Nuremberg. According to the civil code, a dog owner is liable without fault if his dog caused damage. The Federal Court of Justice agreed with a health insurance company that demanded regress for treatment costs incurred.
The daughter of a dog owner called her dog back so that he does not get in the way of another walker. The tow leash pulled around the leg of the woman, who fell and suffered a shin fracture. The statutory health insurance requested the pet owner regress in the amount of the treatment costs of 11,639 euros. Rightly so, the Federal Court of Justice ruled (Az. VI ZR 381/23). The management of the animal by humans does not necessarily rule out specific animal races, which results from the independent movement of the animal, its energy and strength.
“An animal owner liability insurance is therefore indispensable for dog owners,” explains damage expert Margareta Bösl from the Universa Versicherung. It is already mandatory in some federal states. It protects pet owners from expensive claims for damages and provides for the resulting personal, property and financial loss. Because of the specific animal risk, according to the bourgeois code, it is a risk liability that does not require the animal owner to fault. “In addition to the liability risk of the dog owner and guardian, the insurance should also pay for damage to rented, leased and borrowed things,” recommends the Universa damage expert. Some providers also provide loss if the dog or pet owner has been damaged and nothing can be obtained from the cause of the damage.