If the HO carrier paid for the dog (highly unlikely as animals are excluded from 99.9% of HO policies) then and only then would they have standing to sue to recover what they had paid (that's called subrogation).
As for "wrongful death", that would need to be pursued by the pet owner and his/her lawyer, the carrier would not be involved. Unless this dog was a champion that commanded huge breeding fees or is a nationally known animal "actor" (Spuds McKenzie or Lassie come to mind), there would not be enough incentive for any lawyer to do it on contingency so instead the owner would pay for the lawyer whose fees would most assuredly be way more than would be recovered.
All too often, clients think that HO policies (since they pay lawyers for defense of the insured) will pick up any and all legal fees that someone might incur. I even had a client once ask if the HO policy would pay to defend their son in a criminal action.
As for "wrongful death", that would need to be pursued by the pet owner and his/her lawyer, the carrier would not be involved. Unless this dog was a champion that commanded huge breeding fees or is a nationally known animal "actor" (Spuds McKenzie or Lassie come to mind), there would not be enough incentive for any lawyer to do it on contingency so instead the owner would pay for the lawyer whose fees would most assuredly be way more than would be recovered.
All too often, clients think that HO policies (since they pay lawyers for defense of the insured) will pick up any and all legal fees that someone might incur. I even had a client once ask if the HO policy would pay to defend their son in a criminal action.
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