Philadelphia Dog Bite Lawyer

Mixed Statute

Philadelphia routes dog bites through two separate offices, and both are worth using. The Animal Care and Control Team, ACCT Philly, handles the animal side and can be reached at (267) 385-3800. The Department of Public Health's Division of Disease Control handles the human exposure side, tracks bite information and issues medical recommendations; individuals can self-report at (215) 685-6748, and medical professionals in the city are required to report animal bites regardless.

Filing with both matters more in Pennsylvania than it would elsewhere, because of how the Dog Law is structured. Recovery beyond medical costs depends on establishing either a 'severe injury' — broken bones, or disfiguring lacerations requiring multiple sutures or cosmetic surgery — or that the owner knew the dog was dangerous. The health department record documents the injury; the ACCT record documents the dog and any history. Different halves of the same claim.

Philadelphia also maintains a municipal enforcement layer, with fines available against owners separately from any civil claim. That exposure is the owner's rather than yours, but it does tend to affect how cooperative an owner is once a complaint has been filed — and the citation record is another place a dog's prior history may surface.

Report a Philadelphia bite to ACCT Philly at (267) 385-3800 and separately to the Department of Public Health's Division of Disease Control, which takes self-reports at (215) 685-6748. Two records, two purposes: in Pennsylvania, damages beyond medical costs require proving either a statutory 'severe injury' or the dog's known dangerous propensities, so the health department file documents your injury while the ACCT file documents the dog. Ask ACCT whether the dog has any prior dangerous dog determination on record.

Read the full statute breakdown: Pennsylvania Dog Bite Laws → · Typical payouts: Pennsylvania Settlement Amounts →