Typically, yes, homeowners insurance and umbrella policies provide coverage if your dog bites a person. Some policies provide coverage exclusions based upon dog breeds (discussed further below).
I am still surprised at the number of dog owners that are unaware that their homeowner's insurance provides coverage for dog bite claims. When we are hired by dog bite victims and make initial contact with dog owners, a good number of dog owners refuse to provide homeowners insurance because they don’t think they have “dog bite insurance”.
An example of liability protection language from a homeowners policy includes, “We will pay damages which an insured person becomes legally obligated to pay because of bodily injury or property damage arising from an occurrence to which this policy applies…” In other words, if a homeowner’s dog bites a person and, as a result, the homeowner is legally liable for the harm, then the liability protection afforded by homeowners insurance applies and protects the homeowner/dog owner.
The homeowners insurance will pay for a personal injury settlement or judgment up to the limit of coverage, and the homeowners insurance will pay for a legal defense if a lawsuit is commenced.