Dog Bite Compensation Calculator UK

There is no fixed payout for a dog bite in the UK. Compensation is assessed case by case using the Judicial College Guidelines (17th edition, 2024), which set brackets for general damages based on injury severity:

Note: Facial injuries attract notably higher awards than similar wounds elsewhere because visible scarring carries lasting psychological impact. Claims involving children are often valued higher too, reflecting the longer lifetime effect of scarring and trauma.

What Your Claim Is Made Of

A dog bite settlement has two parts:

• General damages: compensate the physical pain, suffering and loss of amenity from the injury itself, valued from the Judicial College brackets above. Psychological harm counts here too: PTSD, anxiety and cynophobia (a lasting fear of dogs) can form a significant portion of an award and sometimes exceed the physical injury element.
• Special damages: cover your financial losses on top: private treatment and cosmetic surgery, prescriptions, physiotherapy or counselling, travel to appointments, lost earnings while recovering, loss of future earnings if the prognosis affects your work and care costs even when the care came from family.

A claim that looks minor on the guideline table can grow substantially once special damages are added, which is why keeping every receipt matters. If you are comparing other personal injury frameworks, try our Personal Injury Compensation Calculator UK or evaluate time off work using the Sick Pay Calculator UK.

Who Pays and What the Law Says

Under Section 3 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991, whoever is responsible for a dog must keep it under proper control in any public or private place. The Animals Act 1971 adds strict liability in many circumstances, meaning the owner can be liable even without proving negligence. Any breed can give rise to a claim, not just banned breeds.

Claims are usually paid through the dog owner's pet insurance or the public liability cover in their home insurance, not out of their pocket directly. If you are calculating liability coverage limits, use our Pet Insurance Calculator UK or plan shipping logs with the Pet Transport Cost Calculator UK.

If the owner is uninsured and cannot pay or the dog was deliberately used as a weapon, a claim may instead go through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), though CICA awards are typically lower.

If you were partly responsible, for example by provoking the dog, compensation can be reduced by a percentage under contributory negligence rather than refused outright.

Time Limits

You have three years from the date of the attack to start court proceedings. For children the clock only starts on their 18th birthday, so a claim can be made any time before they turn 21 and a parent or guardian can claim on their behalf sooner as a litigation friend. Most solicitors take dog bite cases on a no win no fee basis.

What to Do After a Dog Bite

Get medical attention first, even for small punctures, since dog bites carry a real infection risk. Then, if you can, gather what a claim will need: the owner's name and address, the dog's breed, photographs of your injuries at each stage of healing, details of witnesses and a police report reference. Report serious incidents to the police on 101 and keep clothing damaged in the attack unwashed. Keep receipts for every expense from day one.

Dog related injuries are rising in the UK, with over 30,000 recorded incidents in 2023, a 21% increase on the year before, so these claims are far more common than most people expect.