Dog liability insurance: here's what you need to know

October 26 , 2023 // Specialty

Published in El Periódico de España

The new animal law forces owners to have compulsory civil liability insurance until now only necessary for 'potentially dangerous' ones.

Pets give life to homes and become another member of the family. Ensuring their well-being and taking care of pets as they deserve should be one of the main objectives of all those who decide to include them in their lives. It is worth insisting: an animal is not a toy. Therefore, one of the novelties is the introduction of mandatory civil liability insurance for dogs, until now only necessary for 'potentially dangerous' ones.

This new law has been proposed with the aim of better protecting domestic animals. The high abandonment rates and frequent cases of animals being mistreated or found in very poor conditions made this law necessary. In addition, not only does it come loaded with new news about the different animals that can no longer be kept at home, until now allowed, but there will be a new mandatory civil liability insurance for dogs.

Dog liability insurance
As we have already talked about before, dog insurance, until now only mandatory for 'potentially dangerous' ones, is now mandatory for all breeds. This policy consists of civil liability insurance, which protects the owner of the animal in the event that it causes damage to a third party.

What happens if they catch me without insurance?
If a law enforcement agent detects that there is no civil liability insurance for our dog, he or she may impose a penalty. Depending on the seriousness of the facts, one sanction or another will be imposed. They can range from an initial informative warning to a fine of 500 euros or up to 10,000 if the detection occurs after the dog causes some type of incident or accident. The application of the sanction will not exempt us from the obligation to cover and pay the expenses that our dog may have caused by the incident.