Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

As I have mentioned, my husband and I are looking into getting a dog. Originally we were looking at bulldogs, but to be honest, the more research I did the more I found they just wouldn't be good for us. They have a number of health issues of which we just wouldn't be capable of dealing with. So we're back to the drawing board with finding a dog.

Anyway, we've decided to look into adopting from a shelter and my husband saw a lab/pit mix that he really liked (of course I would have to meet the dog as well but he sounded cute!) but was leary about going further with this dog b/c he said he heard our insurance policy would go up significantly.

I've never heard of this and was wondering if anyone here has. If so, could you elaborate on this practice?

Thanks for you help! This board is such a wealth of information, I LOVE it!!!!

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Pit bulls make your homeowners insurance go up. I know there are other breeds but i am not 100% sure on what they are. I knwo pits do i guess they are considered a "dangerous" breed because of thier reputation

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Thank you! I had no idea owning a particular type of dog could cause your homeowners insurance to go up.

Would anyone possibly know of a website where I could find more information about this?

Thanks again!

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Actually, not all homeowners policies go up based on the type of dog we have. It totally depends on your carrier.
I believe Allstate may change your rates based on the type of dog, but we have Merrimack and they don't adjust your rates based on dogs at all.

Call your agent or the insurance company directly and find out if they adjust the rates based on a dog that you have. They also may not adjust your rates because the dog is a mutt....

More importantly, since your DH has allergy issues - he should ask to see the dog and spend a little time with it in a room to see if he reacts. Labs have a lot of dander and he may be allergic. If it has more pit type fur then he may be okay since pits have very little dander.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

You would have to let your homeowners know. I called mine (state farm) and they told me that they only want to know if it is a high risk breed (pitbull, rottie, etc). I don't know if it would actually make it go up, but I do know it would be in your BEST Interest to protect yourself, to let the homeowners insurance know.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Posted by Gertyrae

Actually, not all homeowners policies go up based on the type of dog we have. It totally depends on your carrier.
I believe Allstate may change your rates based on the type of dog, but we have Merrimack and they don't adjust your rates based on dogs at all.

Call your agent or the insurance company directly and find out if they adjust the rates based on a dog that you have. They also may not adjust your rates because the dog is a mutt....

More importantly, since your DH has allergy issues - he should ask to see the dog and spend a little time with it in a room to see if he reacts. Labs have a lot of dander and he may be allergic. If it has more pit type fur then he may be okay since pits have very little dander.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

I own a female pit bull, my insurance has not gone up. I have Allstate. I own the dog 7 years. Prior to this dog, I owned another pit bull. My insurance did not go up for that dog either.

If you live in NYC you can search the web, there is a wealth of information. Also, contact the ASPCA legal department for information. Another get source of information is animalfarmfoundation.org
Animal Farm Foundation advocates on behalf of pit bulls.

FYI: NYS law prohibits discrimination based on breed. A dog is defined as dangerous based on behavior.

I would not be concerned about adopting the dog in question and worrying about your insurance going up.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

I am not understanding why you feel you have to notify your carrier. That is like anticipating the dog is going to be aggressive based on its breed. I see no need to notify the carrier. Nothing has happened to warrant doing so, You would not notify the carrier if it was a poodle, why a rotti or pit or mix. Breed does not define dangerous or vicious. Behavior defines dangerous or vicious.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

When we applied for homeowners insurance, we were definitely asked what breed our dog is. They laughed when I said we have a dachshund as that is not exactly a breed that concerns them. I laughed back and admitted that they obviously didn't know this dachshund!!! As for pits and pit mixes, I do not feel that they are innately vicious. However, I would not own a dog whose jaw is strong enough to do the damage that a pit bull can do. Any dog can snap at any time, as mine did once. If he were stronger, I would have permanent injuries and my vet said that our conversation about what to do next would have been a much different discussion. I do happen to know a lab pit mix that is a wonderful dog, but like I said, he would not have been my choice when picking a dog. I am also saying this based on a case I had at work, where a dog that some consider to be a dangerous breed basically ripped off a woman's calf muscle. If it were a different type of dog, the same incident would have been just a dog bite, not a lifelong disability. I just wanted to give you a different point of view and I know that many disagree with my view on this.

Message edited 1/14/2008 11:14:53 PM.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

State Farm also charges more...little did they know that my Pekingnese is way more dangerous than any PIT!!

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Message edited 1/14/2008 11:47:02 PM.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

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Message edited 3/4/2013 11:22:42 AM.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

my homeowners is higher because we've got a rotty on the premises. they didn't care about the cocker spaniel or now that we have the maltese.................they only care that we have the rotty!

good luck!

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

When insurance companies do this it is called "breed discrimination".

If one were to be struck by a bicyle and knocked to the ground with a head injury it could be fatal. Same thing if hit by a car. Smaller does not always mean safer or less damage/injury.

Just because the animal is larger does not mean more damage. I am searching for the law statue and breed discrimination information and will post, hope it will help.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Links re: Breed Discrimination

http://www.newyorktails.com/discrim.htm

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

I have two pit mixes and a German Shepard and our homeowners insurance is fine...I don't even think we had to name the "breed" of dog
I can't remember.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

We have a rottie mix and allstate. Our homeowners insurance did not go up though they did ask us if we had a dog.

Geico on the other hand was trying to sell us a secondary insurance and when I told them I had a rottie mix they specifically asked if he "looked" like a rottie. I said he had the markings and they said sorry we can't insure you (though they were the ones that approached us).

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Message edited 1/16/2008 11:29:06 AM.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Posted by Jennie0898

Posted by niikki-8-18-06

We have a rottie mix and allstate. Our homeowners insurance did not go up though they did ask us if we had a dog.

Geico on the other hand was trying to sell us a secondary insurance and when I told them I had a rottie mix they specifically asked if he "looked" like a rottie. I said he had the markings and they said sorry we can't insure you (though they were the ones that approached us).

I don't understand how they can get away with that!

BTW your dog is beautiful!!!

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

Message edited 11/15/2011 9:56:12 PM.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?

There is a wealth of information regarding NY State law against breed discrimination. Sadly, many owners surrender their dogs to shelters when threatened by insurance companies. There are many insurance companies that do not require coverage regardless of breed, GEICO is not one of them. Allstate does.

NYS law protects breeds such as the pit bull, pit bull mix, rotti etc. from breed discrimiation. A dog is deemed dangerous by behavior, not breed.

Go to animalfarmfoundation.org Great organization.

Re: Do certain breeds of dogs cause your homeowners insurance to go up?