As the dog days of summer approach, the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance and the United States Postal Service remind Tennessee homeowners that leash laws can be a homeowner’s best friend when it comes to preventing costly dog bite insurance claims. For 2016, the Insurance Information Institute and State Farm estimate dog bites in Tennessee topped more than 300 claims with $9.4 million paid out.Nationwide, dog bites and other dog-related injuries accounted for more than one-third of all homeowners liability claim dollars paid in 2016, costing in excess of $600 million. The number of dog bite insurance claims increased from 15,352 in 2015 to over 18,000 in 2016.“While dogs make great companions, sometimes they do bite, which could mean dog-bite claims for pet owners,” said Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance assistant commissioner Michael Humphreys.