Florida bill could require ‘dangerous dog’ owners to pay upwards of $200 in insurance fees

PENSACOLA, Fla. — A bill in Tallahassee would put more regulations on owners of dangerous dogs.

It’s called the “Pam Rock Act,” and was passed unanimously last week by a state House committee.

The bill was named after mail carrier Pam Rock. She was killed two years ago when a pack of dogs attacked her while she was on the job.

A lot of the rules in this bill are already in place on a local level.

However, the law would require dog owners to take extra steps to protect the community from their animal.

It’s a story that was thrusted into the national spotlight.

2 years ago in August, a Putnam County mail carrier was on her daily route when suddenly a pack of dogs escaped from a fenced in yard and killed 61-year-old Pam Rock.

The violent attack inspired Florida House Representative Bobby Payne to create “Pam’s Law,” which is a bill which holds dangerous dog owners accountable and creates a statewide dangerous dog registry.

Randy Lambert is the director for Santa Rosa County Animal Services. He says dogs need to meet certain criteria in order to be deemed dangerous.

“In order for an animal to be deemed as dangerous, there has to be a bite history,” Lambert said.

Dangerous dogs are defined in the bill as attacking and seriously injuring or killing a person without being provoked.

The dog would also need to be deemed dangerous by a local committee.

Dangerous dogs would need to be confined to a kennel in order to protect the public.

Lambert says the county has strict rules regarding dangerous dogs.

“If the dog gets loose and bites someone, the owner will be arrested and the dog will be euthanized,” Lambert said.

The bill would increase dangerous dog violation fines to $1,000 and require the dog owners to purchase a $100,000 dog liability insurance policy.

Mary Jordan owns Gulf Coast Insurance and says this policy is not common.

“It’s not necessarily common. People don’t seek it out. They look for their homeowner’s company to cover it for them. Usually, it’s an addon to their homeowners policy but there’s a limit and there’s a whole list of dogs excluded,” Jordan said.

Jordan says the policy could add between $50 to $200 a month to the owner’s home insurance policy.

But getting the policy may not be easy.

“If the dog has a known bite history, you’re going to have a challenge in obtaining coverage because no one is going to want to take on that risk,” Jordan said.

The bill now moves on to a Judiciary Committee before heading to the House floor for a final vote.