When child injuries occur, it is important that you have a good child injury attorney on your side. In March of 2017, a Los Angeles County judge oversaw a case in which an 8-year-old boy died due to the abuse inflicted on him by his mother. The judge declared that the four social workers charged with overseeing the boy’s case should stand trial for child abuse. According to the court, the workers did not follow up on the noticeable evidence of the abuse incurred. The social workers’ negligence led to the mother and her boyfriend killing the young boy. This is a case of injuries and death that could have been avoided.
Not all injuries to children are life threatening. In some cases, children can simply be hurt or suffer a life-changing injury for which parents can receive compensation. While the intensity of the previously mentioned case in LA County is rare, child injury is common in California.
Injuries from Neglect
Many catastrophic events in which children are hurt result from neglect. There are numerous reasons a child may be injured. These can range from defective toys to playground accidents in which the equipment or area was unsafe. Depending on what type of injury and where it occurred, the compensation you can seek will differ. If a parent pays for medical bills after the accident, compensation can be sought. However, parents are not always capable of gaining financial compensation if their child is injured.
How Injuries Occur in Small Children
According to Reuters, in the United States, accidents involving babies and defective equipment occur every eight minutes. Injuries can range from minor scratches to loss of fingers or worse. Between 1991 and 2011, there were around 1.4 million injuries involving children 3 years old or younger. If you consider the injuries that occur to children between 3 and 18, the numbers in the US soar.
What if Parents are Responsible?
Not all cases of child injury are due to faulty equipment or are even accidental. Sometimes, like in the case of the 8-year-old LA County boy, the injury is the direct fault of the parent. In that case, the death of the child could have been avoided by social workers and their reporting of abuse. However, ultimately, the mother was responsible for physically killing the child.
If the injury is a result of a lack of parental supervision and the parent then wants to receive compensation, the court will deny the claim, as the parent’s poor supervision caused the injury.
Negligent Supervision
When you leave your child at school, day-care, or camp, there are people in charge of looking after your child. If an injury occurs during these hours and it is due to a lack of supervision, you can seek compensation to pay for any medical bills that may accumulate.
This was the case in Florida, when two children were injured in 2016 during a summer camp. The leaders were teaching the children how to start a fire, but unfortunately, the children were hurt because the fire got out of hand.
Flahavan Law Offices
If you and your child have experienced injury and the medical expenses that come after a hospital visit, contact Flahavan Law Offices. Flahavan Law Offices specializes in personal injury law and can give you advice on the compensation you deserve. Visit our dedicated page on child injuries or contact us directly. Flahavan Law Offices is here to help with all your personal injury law needs.