Every day, a child gets hurt in an accident resulting from the negligence or recklessness of another person. Watching your child getting hurt or receiving that call that your child was involved in an accident is devastating and scary.
Depending on the severity of the injury, the child can sustain life-long injuries, meaning a lifetime of medical expenses for the parent. If your child suffers injuries from negligence and you do not know the best way forward, consult a personal injury lawyer to help you file a compensation claim.
The law allows the parents or guardians to make compensation claims on behalf of children to recover damages. Also, the hurt minor in a personal injury claim can wait until they become adults to file the claim themselves.
What Are the Common Types of Injuries in Minors?
Road Accidents
Like adults, minors are involved in road accidents either while inside their parent’s car (who gets into an accident), while crossing the road, or playing. Drivers must watch out for kids, especially if they are driving near schools, playgrounds, or residential places.
School Accidents
The circumstances that lead to injuries at school are unique to different schools and the child. However, the most common school injuries include sports injuries, school fights, food poisoning, school bus accidents, slip and fall accidents, bullies, and playground injuries.
Suppose your child is injured at school due to negligence. In that case, you need to collect information like photos of the injury, CCTV footage, medical receipts, and eyewitnesses to help you prove the claim and get compensation.
Accidents at Public Amenities
Minors can be injured at public amenities like playgrounds in different ways:
- Lack of proper maintenance and security in the playground
- Use of old or poorly-maintained equipment could result in severe injuries, like broken bones or back injuries, if a child falls from faulty or high equipment
- Inappropriate or negligent employee actions
- Food poisoning if the food consumed in the premises caused health complications later.
Birth Injuries
Negligence or poor conduct of nurses and doctors during birth can result in injuries to the newborn. Birth injuries can result in cerebral palsy, brain damage, spinal cord injuries, shoulder dystocia, and hip dislocation. Like brain tissue injuries, some of these injuries remain with the child for the rest of their lives.
If the mother is certain that the infant was injured due to negligence, she should file a claim to get compensation. The money paid as compensation cannot reverse some of these damages, but it will help you with the hefty medical bills and give you peace of mind that the person at fault was held accountable.
Toy Injuries
Unsafe, defective, or age-inappropriate toys cause injuries among children. Therefore make sure to check the age suggestion of toys before purchasing them for your child. For instance, marbles and small block toys are inappropriate for children under three because they can easily be swallowed and lead to suffocation.
On the other hand, you should file a claim if the toy purchased was age-appropriate but was defective. To strengthen such a claim, keep the receipts of purchase and receipts from the hospital.
With this information, your lawyer will be able to build a solid compensation claim.
Contact a Personal Injury Lawyer
Nursing an injured child and handling a compensation claim at the same time is overwhelming. Seek the services of a personal injury lawyer to help you with the claim as you concentrate on helping your child get better.