On the 29th September it will be a requirement by law to have *all* dogs insured for liability, this is as a result of a new law that was passed in March and published on the “BOE” (official Spanish state webpage).
The new law is called the Animal Welfare Law where it has been recognised that pets are no longer seen as objects but are considered sentient. There are many things that the new law has confirmed to be prohibited, there are a few examples below:
1, Mistreating, physically harm or negligence
2, Euthanising an animal must be as a result of illness and deemed necessary by the vet to end/stop suffering
3, Can´t be used for fighting/baiting
4, Surgery for only aesthetic reasons is prohibited
5, Abandoning an animal in open or enclosed spaces
Unfortunately this law does not apply to hunting dogs …..
Off the back of the above and all across Spain it will mandatory for all dogs to have liability.
This can be a stand alone policy OR if you have home insurance the dog whether dangerous or not can be added to the policy. Depending on the breed, size and general stature of the dog it may or may not fall into the dangerous dog category. If it does fall into the dangerous dog category there may be a small fee to pay if adding to the home or it may be best to have a stand alone policy.
The costs do vary for the stand alone policies depending on the dog but they start at around 72€ for 150.000€ or around 100€ for 300.000€ of liability however the cost could change depending on the breed, height/weight etc.
There has been mention of a fine for not having cover in place and this is from 500€ to 1000€ …..