What If the Dog Owner Is Renting — Can I Still Recover?

Whether the dog owner rents or owns their home, Michigan law makes them liable. The path to recovery is just slightly different.

The Short Answer

Yes — the dog’s owner is strictly liable under MCL 287.351 regardless of whether they own the home or rent it. Most renters carry renter’s insurance, which typically includes liability coverage for dog bites just like a homeowner’s policy. If the renter doesn’t have renter’s insurance, the landlord may share liability in certain circumstances, and personal pursuit of the renter remains an option.

Video coming soon — Solomon Radner answers this question

The Detailed Answer

There’s a persistent myth that you can’t recover from a renter for a dog bite — that without homeowner’s insurance, there’s no insurance, and without insurance, there’s no claim. That’s not how it works. Renters carry liability coverage too, and even without it, several recovery paths remain open.

Renter’s insurance — the primary path

Most renter’s insurance policies (often called HO-4 policies) include personal liability coverage typically in the range of $100,000-$300,000. This coverage pays exactly when the policyholder’s negligence or strict liability causes injury to a third party. Dog bites by the renter’s dog are explicitly covered by most policies — with the same exclusions and exceptions as homeowner’s policies.

If the renter has renter’s insurance, the claim proceeds essentially identically to a homeowner case. The renter’s carrier evaluates the claim, negotiates settlement, and pays the recovery from the policy.

What if the renter has no insurance

If there’s no renter’s insurance, you still have options:

Pursue the renter personally — see our guide on uninsured dog owners
Investigate landlord liability (discussed below)
Check your own homeowner’s or renter’s insurance for medical payments coverage that may apply

Michigan landlords are generally NOT liable for tenants’ dog bites — but there are important exceptions. A landlord may be liable when:

The landlord knew the dog was dangerous and could have required the tenant to remove it
The lease included a no-pets clause that the landlord knowingly ignored
The landlord controlled the area where the bite occurred (a common stairwell, common yard)
The landlord owned the property AND directly maintained the dangerous condition (fence failures, etc.)

See our apartment dog bite liability guide for the complete breakdown of when landlord claims succeed in Michigan.

What This Means for Your Case

A renter dog owner is NOT a dead end for your case. Most cases proceed through the renter’s insurance policy with the same case value as homeowner cases. When insurance is absent, alternative paths often work. Don’t accept “the owner is just a renter” as a reason not to pursue your claim.

Bitten by a dog in Michigan? Call 1-800-LAWSUIT or request a free case review. No fee unless we win.