A home policyholder who faces legal costs over a dog attack will receive a payout after the complaints authority accepted she had temporary ownership of the pet, which belonged to her mother-in-law.

The woman claimed under her home and contents policy after she was sued over injuries to someone the dog attacked while she was walking it.  

Suncorp rejected the claim, citing an exclusion for legal liabilities arising from “any animals other than your domestic dog, cat or horse”.

The woman argued the dog should be considered hers for coverage purposes, because it was in her care while her mother-in-law was ill.

She said the term “your” was not limited to ownership but could refer to things “in one’s possession, under one’s control, associated with and so forth”.

She also noted the policy term “your contents” encompassed items policyholders “own or are responsible for”.

In its ruling, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority said: “The insurer notes this was explicitly stated to clarify the term ‘your contents’ as it does in other sections. 

“Therefore, if the intention was for ‘your domestic dog’ to include dogs the complainants are responsible for, it would be set out in a similar way. 

“The fact it does not means it is limited to dogs the complainants own.” 

But AFCA recognises that while “your dog” typically implies a pet an insured owns, it could also apply to a dog they are temporarily caring for. 

Given the ambiguous nature of the wording, it is fair to side with the insured.   

“If a person who was in temporary custody of a dog decided to walk that dog in the park, other people would typically describe it as ‘their dog’ given they were responsible for it and in control of it,” an ombudsman said. 

“This is similar to what has occurred in the complainants’ case and has resulted in the proceedings against the complainants. 

“Therefore, I consider the phrase ‘your domestic dog’ can include a dog that the insured is in temporary custody and control of at the relevant time.”   

See the ruling here. 

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