Understanding North Carolina Dog Bite Laws

When a person is bitten by a dog, it is typically the dog owner who is held liable for damages.  North Carolina laws state that dog owners will be held liable and thus responsible for paying damages to a dog bite victim if the following is true:

• The owner allowed his or her dog to run at large while unaccompanied at night. This part of the law only applies to dogs that are six months old or older.
• The dog has severely injured or killed someone in the past.
• The dog has a history of aggressive behavior and the owner knew the dog was “potentially dangerous."
  • A dog is considered potentially dangerous if it was/ is used for dog fighting, if it terrorized a person while away from its owner’s property, if it severely injured or killed another domesticated animal, or if it previously bit a person resulting in disfigurement or broken bones that required hospitalization or surgery.