Legal News
Dog Bites Hospitalize 6,000 Victims Per Annum (5 January 2012)
Date: 05/01/2012
The number of individuals admitted to hospital with dog bites has reached 6,000, new figures have revealed. The increasing medical caseload resulting from out-of-control canines was disclosed by the NHS. In response to the growing number of people suffering from injuries caused by dangerous dogs, new sentencing guidelines, which suggested two-year prison sentences for the worst offenders, were proposed last month by the judicial authorities. The Sentencing Council claimed that the new guidelines would ensure that irresponsible dog owners were banned from keeping dogs and victims of dog attacks were adequately compensated.
According to NHS statistics, the number of dog bite injuries reported to A&E departments in the UK increased by 94 per cent in a decade. Court convictions for canine-related offences have also shown a rapid increase. The number of dog owners sentenced for crimes relating to dangerous dogs increased by 39 per cent between 2009 and 2010 and there was a 58 per cent rise in the number of dog owners charged and ordered to attend court in the same year.
An Environment Department spokesperson has stated that new measures to protect individuals from dangerous dogs would be released early in 2012. The new measures have been proposed to enable police officers and councils to hold dog owners accountable for the injuries caused by their dogs. Huw Irranca-Davies, the Shadow Food and Farming Minister, has urged the Government not to delay in tackling the issue of irresponsible dog owners.
Duncan Lewis’ personal injury solicitors can seek compensation on behalf of clients who have suffered dog bites.