INSURANCE COSTS UNLEASHED RATES RISE FOR PEOPLE WITH POOCH ON PROPERTY.

Byline: Holly Edwards Staff Writer

Dog owners beware - homeowners insurance has become more expensive and more difficult to find as liability claims and jury awards for dog bites skyrocket.

Increasing dog bite claims have led to rising premium costs for dog owners, and insurance officials say a large civil settlement in the Diane Whipple mauling lawsuit could have a ripple effect leading to further insurance cost increases for canine owners.

The 33-year-old lacrosse coach was attacked and killed by two presa canario dogs in a hallway outside her San Francisco apartment.

``Insurance companies are looking closely at the potential for increasing liability costs and jury awards for dog bites and either excluding liability coverage for dog bites, or not offering coverage at all,'' said Nanci Kramer, spokeswoman for the California Department of Insurance.

``I think we can expect further changes in insurance coverage for dog owners and we'll continue to see the responsibility thrown back to the dog owners with the Whipple civil suit.''

In addition to facing huge civil liability in the Whipple case, the dogs' owners, Marjorie Knoller, 46, and her husband, Robert Noel, 60, were convicted of manslaughter. Knoller, who was present during the attack, also was convicted of second-degree murder.

Liability claims in California for dog bites have increased $20 million in the past four years, with the fastest rising costs for insurance companies stemming from jury awards for dog bites, officials said. Overall, jury awards in liability cases of all kinds have increased 56 percent in recent years, said Pete Moraga, spokesman for the Insurance Information Network of California.

Each insurance company is handling the rising cost of dog bites differently, Kramer said. Some require dog owners to sign liability waivers for dog bites, others charge more for owners of so-called biting breeds such as pit bulls and Rottweilers, and others refuse to insure dog owners at all.

The creation of specialty insurance policies just for dog bites is not expected any time soon because such policies would be cost prohibitive.

``When you're looking at the potential for huge losses, insurance companies would have to sell a lot of these specialty policies for it to be worth it,'' Kramer said. ``And the policies would be so expensive that not many dog owners could afford them.''

Nationwide, insurance companies shelled out some $310 million last year to pay liability claims for more than 800,000 dog bites, representing about one-third of all homeowners claims filed, Moraga said.

On average, nearly 5 million people nationwide are bitten by dogs each year and 24 people are killed, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

That's a dramatic increase over statistics from a decade ago, when annual averages of 1.5 million dog bites and 12 fatalities were reported, according to the CDC.

About 200,000 people in Los Angeles County are bitten by dogs each year, county health officials said.

The increase in dog bites coincided with an increase in dog ownership in the mid-1990s as crime rates spiked and people purchased large dogs for protection, officials said.

``Dog bites have become essentially an epidemic in this country. It's absolutely unbelievable,'' said Sharon Pierce, an insurance agent for Mercury Casualty Co., which offers a 10 percent discount on homeowners insurance for policyholders who sign waivers absolving the company of liability for dog bites.

``And it's all part and parcel of people's lack of responsibility that's showing up in insurance settlements. It's a sad situation.''

While insurance company representatives say they have no choice but to increase premium costs for dog owners, some pet owners complain that they are being forced to pay the costs of irresponsible dog owners.

Bobby Dorafshar, a Woodland Hills man who runs the dog rescue organization New Leash on Life, said insurance companies should screen for problem animals instead of charging all dog owners more money.

In addition to the dogs at his kennel, Dorafshar says he has a very lovable pit bull, Rottweiler, Doberman pinscher and chow chow at his house.

While he has not yet been charged extra for homeowners insurance, Dorafshar said he has heard warnings of rising insurance premiums for dog owners - particularly for owners of biting breeds such as his.

``There are a handful of irresponsible people who are making everyone else pay for their vicious dogs,'' Dorafshar said. ``Most dog bites are the owners' fault, and they're making the dog owners who get obedience training for their dogs suffer.''

However, Montaga said many insurance companies are screening dog owners to determine whether the animal is a threat before charging more for homeowners insurance coverage. If the animal is a threat, many companies also offer the option of excluding dog bite liability from coverage, he said.

Other companies screen for breeds of dogs with a reputation for biting, Montaga added.

``Insurance companies look for trends and there is no mandate that requires insurers to cover dogs,'' he said.

While insurance rates rise for dog owners here, a new law in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, requires owners of pit bulls, Rottweilers, Doberman pinschers, bull terriers and filas, a Brazilian species resembling the Great Dane, to carry insurance policies of at least $43,000 to compensate the victims of any attack.

As in Brazil, the rising costs of dog ownership in this country are forcing all pet owners to reassess their responsibility, Kramer said.

``People get dogs and just throw them in their back yard, where they are lonely, undisciplined and untrained,'' she said. ``In the past, people may not have realized what their responsibilities were as a pet owner, but they're sure finding out now.''

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2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Bobby Dorafshar, being kissed by rescued shepherd Emma, says insurance companies should screen for problem animals.

(2) Bobby Dorafshar, head of the rescue organization New Leash on Life, plays with some of the dogs he has saved.

Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer