Common Child Injuries & Their Rights as a Victim

Children are remarkably prone to injuries. Lack of coordination, curiosity about the world around them, and many things not being built to accommodate someone of their reduced size makes the world a dangerous place for kids, and it’s not at all uncommon for them to become injured. While kids do have the excellent ability to recover from injures that would much more serious for someone older, their injuries could still result in serious losses for you as their parent. Furthermore, they do have rights as injury victims, including the right to compensation.

Claiming Child Injuries

Children don’t usually have the right to pursue legal matters on their own because of their status as a minor. However, as a parent or guardian you have the right to pursue compensation on their behalf. In fact, if the injured child is your dependent, you may be able to hold the negligent party liable for their injuries and pursue a lawsuit on their behalf. These cases are slightly more complicated, but handled similarly to if you were injured yourself.

Just like if you were injured, it’s strongly advised that you retain a Dunedin personal injury attorney to help you with your case. Your lawyer can utilize the evidence available in your case to prove that the responsible party is liable for their injuries and get you the compensation you need to care for their injuries. While the damages you can pursue on their behalf may be different from damages you could claim if you were injured yourself (for example, you can’t claim lost income if your child isn’t working), you still could recover the costs of the medical bills you incur because of your child’s injuries, pain and suffering, and more!

Common Child Injuries

Children are particularly prone to a number of common injuries, often because they simply don’t recognize the danger that a certain situation may carry. For example, many children may not be able to recognize when a dog is friendly or unfriendly, and could sustain serious injuries as a result of a dog bite. Children are also prone to trip-and-fall or slip-and-fall injuries simply because they often don’t recognize hazards that could cause them injury. Finally, children are almost exclusively the only group of people who can suffer what is known as an “attractive nuisance” injury, which is one sustained after gaining access to a hazardous property feature that isn’t properly secured, such as an un-fenced swimming pool or rusty playground.