u/mnt796

Location: Colorado, USA

Our family dog bit an Amazon delivery driver during a late night delivery. There were clear delivery instructions to leave packages in a designated box near the entrance of our driveway and multiple “no trespassing” and “beware of dog” signs posted. Amazon also has these instructions on file. Despite that, the driver approached the house, quickly got out of his vehicle and was bitten on the pinky finger. It broke skin, but was not a severe injury. There is now an official bite record, and animal control has been involved.

The driver has filed a claim with our homeowners insurance. Our insurance company says they will continue to cover us, but only if we remove the dog from the home. We live in a high fire risk area where getting new homeowners insurance is extremely difficult, especially now with a dog that has a bite record.

We also contacted the local animal shelter to understand options. They said they could take the dog, but because of the bite history, he would likely be euthanized even though it’s a single bite incident. The person we spoke with suggested that if euthanasia were the outcome, it might be more humane to do it at home rather than in a shelter setting.

So now we’re trying to figure out what comes next. We’re completely overwhelmed and heartbroken, and just trying to make a responsible decision.

Would hiring a lawyer at this stage realistically change anything about the insurance company’s requirement to remove the dog, or is this typically something insurers stick to once a claim is opened?

Looking for practical guidance from anyone familiar with Colorado liability or homeowners insurance claims.

I’m in a really tough situation and could use some outside perspective.

My family has a dog who recently bit someone. It wasn’t a severe mauling, but it did break skin and now there’s an official bite record. The incident happened during a late night Amazon delivery. We had clear instructions to leave packages in a designated box and multiple “dog on property” warning signs posted, but the driver still approached the house and that’s when the bite occurred.

We’re in a high fire risk area where insurance companies aren’t accepting new policies, so switching isn’t really an option. Our current insurance company has said they’ll continue to cover us, but only if we remove the dog from the home.

We contacted the local animal shelter to ask about options, and they told us they would take the dog, but because of the bite history, he would likely be euthanized there. The person we spoke to suggested that if euthanasia is the outcome, it might be kinder to do it at home where he’s comfortable instead of in a shelter environment.

Now we’re trying to figure out what the right thing to do is. We’re heartbroken and overwhelmed. On one hand, we don’t want to put him down if there’s any safe alternative. On the other, we’re worried about liability, safety, and whether rehoming is even responsible or realistic at this point.

Has anyone dealt with something like this? What options did you consider, and how did you make the decision?

Please be kind. This is really hard. We’re not downplaying what happened that’s why euthanasia is even part of this conversation.