Kids are injured every day, whether they go to private or public schools. There are over 9 million children who end up in the emergency room each day, and 3 million of those children are in the ER due to injuries from a fall. There’s an estimated 20,000 children, who are under the age of 14 that suffer traumatic brain injuries each year due to accidents that happened while they were in school.
So with those stats, it’s a bit hard to reassure yourself that your child is safe at school. But, you can reassure yourself that there are school accident lawyers who can help you get the compensation that you and your family deserves for any injuries that your child suffered because their school was negligent.
Accidents happen, and parents get that. But when an accident happens that was preventable—and should have had steps in place to prevent it? That’s when parents worry. Administrators and teachers are supposed to do everything they can to prevent accidents, and while not every accident can be prevented, a lot of them can.
Common Causes of Injuries at School
Children get hurt, that’s what it boils down to. Children may slip and fall, as is very common. They may slip and fall down stairs, because of ice and snow, wet floors, or even broken or missing handrails and much more. They also spend a lot of time playing on the playground and playing sports! That means children may get injured on playgrounds due to lack of supervision, poorly maintained equipment, and more.
But that’s not all. There are also things like fights and bullying. That’s not something teachers and staff can control, but they can try to stop it before it escalates to a certain point. Bullying may not even take a physical toll but an emotional and mental toll instead.
There are food poisoning incidents when food is improperly stored, prepared, or is contaminated by someone coming to work with an illness. Sometimes it’s not even the school but the vendor’s fault.
Disasters can be handled safely, though if you have a severe lack of planning you can get injuries. There should be evacuation plans that you practice as well as safety drills to help reduce the risk of injury to the children in your care, if you’re a teacher in a classroom.
What You’ll Need
You as a parent will need to reach out to a lawyer to discuss your child’s potential case. If the lawyer finds that you have a case, you’ll need to be able to provide proof that the school caused your child’s injuries in a negligent manner.
Photographs and videos of the child’s injuries, security cameras may provide footage of your child and how they gained their injuries as well. You’d also need witness statements, anyone who saw the injury take place, and of course damages. Did your child have a medical bill, emergency service bill, dental care, even mental health care—if so, that’s going to fall under damages. You’ll want any receipts and out-of-pocket expenses gathered to show proof that you deserve compensation.