When a child is injured in an accident, it can be incredibly difficult for the whole family. In addition to the physical and mental anguish that the child might experience, the parents may also be experiencing stress, grief, and financial strain. If the child’s injury is severe enough to require long-term care, the parents might struggle with how to provide this level of care – and still provide for their family.

Compensation in a child injury lawsuit should include money for all of the losses that your child has experienced, including medical bills, future medical treatment, pain and suffering, and more. It can also include money for your own lost wages and reduced earning capacity if you have to cut back on work or stop working to care for your child. Our Staten Island personal injury attorneys will fight to ensure that all of your losses as a family are fully covered by a settlement or verdict at trial.

At The O’Connor Law Firm, we represent clients throughout Staten Island who have been hurt in all types of accidents – including children. We offer free initial consultations and never charge a fee unless we recover money for you. To learn more or to schedule an appointment with a Staten Island child accident attorney, reach out to our law offices today.

Filing a Lawsuit in a Child Accident Case

If your minor child is injured in a motor vehicle accident, they are entitled to compensation for their injuries – just as they would be if they were an adult. Typically, a lawsuit is filed on behalf of the child by their parents or legal guardians. If the parents were also injured in the crash, then the claim for a child’s injuries might be part of a broader lawsuit. 

If another person caused your child’s injuries, then they can be held liable through a personal injury lawsuit. Through this type of claim, you can recover financial compensation for all of your child’s losses. This may include:

• Medical expenses, including emergency room visits, hospitalizations, surgeries and procedures, medication, physical therapy and rehabilitation, mental health services such as therapy, assistive devices, and future medical treatment
• Lost wages if your child is a teen with a job and cannot work because of their injuries
• Lost future earning capacity for situations involving severe injuries where a child’s ability to work in the future may be impacted
• Pain and suffering, which is based on factors such as the severity of the injury, the length of the recovery, long-term or permanent effects, and the impact of the injury on your child’s daily life and activities
• Emotional distress and mental anguish, such as anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), sleep disturbances, and any phobias or other mental health conditions that develop as a result of the accident
• Reduced quality of life, including loss of independence, an inability to participate in activities that your child previously enjoyed, and a reduced capacity for social interaction
• Educational support and accommodations, such as tutoring services, special education programs, assistive technology, and modifications to the school environment
• Home and vehicle modifications, such as wheelchair ramps, widened doorways, vehicle lifts, and adapted bathrooms

This compensation – known as damages – is intended to pay for a child’s losses after an accident. Any settlement for a child’s accident should include money for all of these damages. If a child was hurt because of someone’s intentional or reckless conduct (such as a drunk driving accident), then they may also be awarded punitive damages.

Insurance companies often try to minimize the amount that they pay out on accident claims, including those involving children. The best way to get maximum compensation for your injuries is by working with an experienced Staten Island personal injury attorney who can negotiate a top-dollar settlement – or take your child’s case to trial.

Most personal injury cases are resolved outside of court, often through a settlement. For cases involving minors, a judge will have to approve any settlement.  Your lawyer can walk you through the process to ensure that your child’s rights are protected.

How Will I Pay for Long-Term Care for My Child After Their Accident?

The losses described above all relate to what a child may have suffered as a result of an accident. Yet as any parent knows, if your child is hurt, it will also impact your life. For example, you might have to take time off of work to take your child to doctor’s appointments – or even quit your job completely in order to provide long-term care for your child.

Your child’s future medical care should be paid for as part of any settlement or verdict at trial. For example, if they require years of physical and occupational therapy, that amount should be covered by money from the personal injury claim. But what happens when a parent suffers financial losses because they need to provide care for their injured child?

A parent’s losses can be included as part of a child injury settlement. This may include money for lost wages for the time that you needed to take off of work to take care of your child’s needs, as well as reimbursement for nurses, babysitters, and other caretakers that you hired to take care of your child when you were unavailable.

It can also include compensation for your reduced earning capacity if your child suffered permanent injuries. If you had to cut your work hours or stop working to take care of your child, then that should be reflected through compensation from the at-fault driver’s insurance company.

For example, consider a situation where your car was t-boned in a crash and your child suffered a brain injury. They survived the accident, but have permanent deficits from the damage to their brain. They will never be able to hold down a job or live independently, and require constant supervision and help with basic activities like feeding themselves or using the bathroom.

The life of a parent of a child with this type of catastrophic injury will change dramatically. They might need to quit their job or hire someone who can provide round-the-clock care for their child. Because these losses are directly linked to the injury caused by the accident, they should be included as part of any settlement.

A skilled Staten Island car accident lawyer will thoroughly evaluate your case and make sure that you and your child are fully compensated for your losses. Our law offices will work with you to help you get the money that you deserve – and are entitled to under New York law – for your losses.

Help for Parents of Child Accident Victims

As parents, we want to protect our kids and keep them safe. When they are hurt in a car accident, we want to get justice for them. This may also include securing compensation so that we can care for them and help them recover.

The O’Connor Personal Injury Firm represents clients who have been hurt in car accidents, subway accidents, pedestrian accidents, motorcycle accidents, and other types of accidents. Our goal in each case is to help our clients get maximum compensation for their losses – including lost wages and reduced earning capacity related to a need to take care of a child with a long-term injury. To learn more or to set up an appointment with a Staten Island child injury attorney, give us a call at 866-927-3809 or fill out our online contact form.