The United States Postal Service (USPS) released statistics about dog bite incidents involving mail carriers earlier this month. Well, there was good news and bad news. The good news was that the number of postal employees attacked by dogs nationwide fell to 5,714 in 2018, more than 500 fewer than 2017 and more than 1,000 fewer since 2016.
However, the unfortunate reality is that thousands of mail carriers across the country continue to face attacks while performing their duties.
In 2018, four California cities—Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento, and Oakland—were among the top 25 cities with the most dog attacks involving mail carriers.
Los Angeles was number two in the country, next to Houston. San Diego was number 12, Sacramento was number 19, and Oakland was number 21.
2023 Dog Bite Attacks on Mail Carriers
In 2023, California reported 727 dog attacks on mail carriers, the highest number in the state. Los Angeles had the most attacks, accounting for 65 of those cases.
Use of Advanced Technology
The USPS has been trying to equip its workers with technology that could determine whether dogs are on the property. USPS officials say mail carriers are equipped with scanners, which help confirm customer delivery and have a built-in feature to indicate the presence of a dog at an individual address.
The Package Pickup application asks customers to indicate if dogs are at their address when they schedule package pickups, which allows USPS to send alerts to those carriers.
Preventive Steps and Liability Issues
As a homeowner or business owner, you can take steps to ensure that mail carriers are safe. Place your dog in a separate room and close the door before you open the front door for your mail carrier.
Parents should remind children not to directly take mail from postal workers in the dog’s presence because the dog might view the mail carrier as a threat to the family member.
If your dog attacks and injures a mail carrier, you could be held financially responsible for the injuries and damages caused. Under California’s strict liability statute, dog owners can be held liable for the injuries, damages, and losses their pets cause.
Injured victims can seek compensation for damages such as medical expenses, lost income, hospitalization, cost of cosmetic surgery, rehabilitative care, pain and suffering, and emotional distress.
As a law firm that has represented mail carriers who dogs have been mauled, we understand how such an incident can leave individuals disabled and psychologically devastated for life. If you or a loved one has been injured in a dog attack, please get in touch with an experienced Los Angeles dog bite lawyer to understand your legal rights and options better.
Source: https://about.usps.com/newsroom/national-releases/2019/0411-usps-releases-dog-attack-national-rankings.htm
