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KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Legal Rights for Injured Children: Parents have the legal right to pursue claims for children injured in car accidents. Despite the distressing experience of seeing a child hurt, understanding legal options is crucial.
- Entitlement to Compensation: Injured children, represented by their parents, are entitled to various forms of compensation, including medical expenses, lost wages (if applicable), pain and suffering, and mental anguish. However, evidence must support these claims.
- Parental Compensation: Parents can also seek compensation for expenses incurred while caring for their injured child, such as medical bills and lost wages. These damages must be foreseeable and directly related to the accident.
- Possibility of Out-of-Court Settlements: Many cases involving injured children can be settled out of court. However, settlements may require court approval, which involves presenting facts, resolving medical expenses, and demonstrating injury recovery.
- Statute of Limitations: Time constraints apply to pursuing claims for injured children. While the statute of limitations for personal injury claims in Tennessee is typically one year from the date of the injury, minors have until reaching the age of majority to file. However, parental claims for expenses must still adhere to the one-year timeframe from the accident date. Seeking legal assistance promptly is advised to protect rights within these time limits.
My Child Was Hurt in a Car Wreck. What Are Our Rights?
Seeing your child hurt is a terrifying experience, and the legal side of things can feel overwhelming. We understand the unique challenges parents face after a car accident involving their child. Although we like to believe that we can keep our children safe, most parents know that whether our children encounter danger is often outside of our control. The same is true whenever our children ride in a car, whether they are riding with parents and family, or, say, on a school bus, with an Uber or Lyft driver, babysitter, or friend’s parents.
Nobody can predict when a car accident will occur, so if your child has been injured as a passenger in a motor vehicle collision in Tennessee, you may have questions as to what their legal rights are. Our team of experienced attorneys has a proven track record of helping families in Tennessee navigate these situations.
Case result – $1.3 MILLION: INFANT DEATH RESULTING FROM CAR WRECK
Our firm represented a twenty-one-year-old woman who was in a head-on automobile collision where she suffered blunt abdominal trauma. At the time of the wreck, she was seven months pregnant. Although her baby was monitored closely through the remaining pregnancy, he was born at 38 weeks with severe neurological deficits and died after 18 days. Our investigation revealed that a brain injury had occurred as a result of the automobile wreck nearly two months before his birth. Our firm enlisted a team of experts and began to develop the case for the wrongful death of the baby.
Check this page for more car accidents case results
Pursuing a Car Accident Claim for an Injured Child
The law does allow parents to pursue a claim for a child injured in a car accident. Unfortunately, children are commonly injured in accidents involving cars, trucks, pedestrians, bicycles, and buses. If your child has suffered personal injuries, here are questions that may be on your mind:
1. What type of compensation is my child entitled to?
If your child is involved as a passenger in an automobile wreck, he or she essentially has all of the same legal rights as an adult who is involved in an automobile wreck. The only difference is that the parent(s) will typically bring the claim on behalf of the injured minor, as those below the age of majority cannot bring claims themselves. In a personal injury claim, your child is entitled to compensation for any injury, lost wages (if they work), pain and suffering, or mental anguish your child has suffered. Of course, the burden of proving the case is always on the plaintiff, so any claim for injury, lost wages, pain and suffering, or mental anguish, will have to be backed up by medical records or other forms of documentation.
“My daughter was hit head on by an unlicensed driver while she was almost 5 months pregnant. We reached out to NST Law and they agreed to handle our case. I spoke with several different employees thru the process and they all were very professional and helpful. In the end they were able to get us the maximum amount available as we did not know at the time if the baby would be ok. Fortunately he was but she still had marks from the wreck and emotional stress as well. We were very happy with the out come and I would highly recommend this law firm should you need them for any kind of personal injury.” – M Jones
2. If I spent money on my child’s medical care, or missed work to take them to the doctor, am I entitled to compensation?
Parents are entitled to compensation for losses they experienced as a direct result of caring for their injured child. Any lost wage damages sought, however, must be foreseeable damages, meaning that they have to be the type of losses that would be expected to result from an accident. Parents are often able to recover expenses for medical bills and lost wages incurred due to their injured child’s medical treatment.
3. Can my child’s case be handled out of court?
In many cases, yes. Just like a claim on behalf of an adult, a settlement may be negotiated before a lawsuit has to be filed or a case goes to trial. The only difference is that state law may require a settlement to be approved by a Court before it can be considered final.
In Tennessee, for example, the court approval process often requires a formalized presentation of the facts, proof that medical bills and expenses have been or will be fully resolved, and testimony by the parent(s) and, if age appropriate, the minor that their injuries have healed. It is a matter of the court’s discretion to determine whether the proposed settlement should be approved, which includes the terms of the settlement and proposed disbursements. Our car accident lawyers, in Memphis and other areas in which we practice, are familiar with the legal requirements needed to properly handle a car accident claim on behalf of a child.
4. How long do I have to pursue my child’s claim?
All states have specific statutes of limitation for injury claims. In Tennessee, the statute of limitations for all personal injury claims is one (1) year from the date of the injury. For minors, however, the one (1) year period does not begin to run until they reach the age of majority, which is age 18. What this means is that if your 12-year-old child is injured in a car wreck, he/she technically has until one year from the date of majority to resolve their claim without filing suit; however, were you to want to pursue a claim as the parent for expenses that you incurred for medical bills, lost wages, or other expenses, you would still only have one (1) year from the date of the accident to do so. Time is of the essence, and an experienced car accident attorney can protect your rights.
Call NST’s Car Accident Lawyers to Help with Your Child’s Claim
Nahon, Saharovich & Trotz has been representing children and parents of children injured in automobile accidents for more than 30 years. We more than 30 lawyers and 100 staff skilled in building children’s cases, and obtaining the necessary documentation and evidence to successfully resolve injured children’s claims. If your child was a passenger injured in an automobile accident, call our car and school bus accident lawyers at 800-529-4004 or complete our online form for a free consultation today. Let us show you why NST is the way to go.
“Ms. Susan and Mrs. Christi were awesome. After my children and I were injured in a car accident they made sure we were completely well and got us a more than a fair compensation. They treated us like we were family. The atmosphere was peaceful and we were never rushed. They always had time for our phone calls and visits. They truly want the best for us. I will recommend them to anyone that needs a lawyer. Thank you both so much.”
– The Golden Family. Ruby Golden
