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Accident Claims Against Schools – Playground Equipment
Using Playground Equipment Accidents
Personal Injury / Accident Claims Against Schools
Accident Claims Against Schools
Accident claims following a child being injured whilst at school are common as members of staff are under a large duty of care to avoid your child having an accident whilst on the premises.
Young children especially are expected to be inquisitive, not fully aware of the dangers of many activities and not always able to take proper care of their own safety. As a consequence of this, precautions should be taken to keep your child safe at all times – the younger the child the more precautions are needed.
With many schools welcoming vast numbers of children through their doors each and every day, a variety of accidents could potentially occur. Here we take a look at the example of an injury caused while using equipment provided in the school playground.
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Supervision
The younger the child involved in a UK child accident the more likely the accident claim against the school will be.
When children are playing on a playground climbing frame, a suitable member of staff should be supervising. This is especially important when the children are very young as there is a high potential that a child injury could occur. Young children do not always understand the potential dangers of using equipment like this, making it imperative for a teacher to be present.
If a teacher isn’t present and your child suffers injury, this will increase the chances of bringing a successful injury claim against the school.
Suitability of the equipment and tarmac
It should really be accepted that children, especially young children, will fall from playground equipment. This can happen regardless of whether a teacher is supervising or not.
However, what will be at issue are the height of the climbing frame and the suitability of the tarmac below it. The climbing frame should not be too high for a child of a certain age to use. If it is, a member of the teaching staff should prevent them from using it. If a child falls from a climbing frame that’s at a suitable height they won’t have to drop too far before reaching the floor, so the risk of injury will be reduced. If it’s too high serious injury could occur.
The surface underneath the climbing frame should also be able to cushion the fall of the child and prevent injury. Modern surfaces include a kind of rubber which is designed specifically to do just that. The school should ensure this is in place.
If for example your child falls from a climbing frame and breaks an arm, it’s likely that the equipment was too high and the surface below wasn’t properly cushioned. In this event, the school’s potential argument that it was an unavoidable danger of providing this kind of equipment would be unlikely to hold up and a compensation claim could be successful.
How Much Compensation?
All personal injury cases are unique and so the amount of compensation that is awarded in each case is also unique. Compensation is understood by looking at two specific factors: general damages and special damages.
General Damages
The pain and suffering that your injuries have caused are main factors that are used to determine how much general damage compensation you are owed. This will usually be determined by undergoing a medical examination, from which a report is created that highlights the length of time the injuries will take to heal as well as their severity. Our compensation calculator will give you an indication of how much general damage compensation you might be entitled to based upon your injuries.
Special Damages
In addition to receiving compensation for your injuries, you may be able to reclaim any financial losses that you might have suffered as a result of your injuries. Compensation for financial losses is known as special damages compensation. This can include losses such as loss of earnings due to not being able to return to work, the cost of treatment as well as travel to treatment. It is important that you keep any receipts or evidence of additional losses in order for these to be reclaimed. With the exception of children, there is a three-year time limit on making a personal injury claim. This time limit begins from the date that the accident initially occurred. Therefore, you should contact a personal injury solicitor as soon as possible to assess your case.
Making Personal Injury Claims
If you have been involved in an accident with an uninsured driver, you may be entitled to compensation. First Personal Injury solicitors are available to assist you and ensure that you get the compensation you deserve.
First Personal Injury works with both families and individuals across England and Wales, leading them on their legal journey and helping them claim compensation after an accident or injury.
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Get in touch with First Personal Injury on 0800 808 9740 or through our claim online form.