Injured at Daycare: Is the Caregiver Liable for My Child’s Injuries?
Part of being a parent is entrusting the care of your child to your daycare provider, the babysitter who keeps them when you go out in the evening, summer camp counselors and scout leaders. You expect that these individuals have the proper training to care for children, and that they will keep your child safe when you are not there to protect them. If your child suffers an injury while they are in someone else’s care, it is natural to feel distraught, anxious, and angry – even betrayed. But holding the caretaker accountable may not be as easy as it seems.
When you register your child for day care or summer camp, for example, you may be asked to sign a release form. This document is usually a waiver of liability that includes an Indemnity Clause, which says that you as the child’s parent must forfeit your right to sue the program if your child is injured while in their care.
However, the Tennessee Court of Appeals held that even when a parent signs a release form, it does not deprive the child from being able to bring a lawsuit for the injuries they have suffered due to another person’s negligence. (Childress v. Madison County) 777, S.W. 2d 1 (Court of App. Western Sec. 1989). A liability waiver therefore does not prohibit a parent filing a lawsuit on behalf of their child when they have suffered an injury due to negligent supervision while under a caregiver’s responsibility.
Types of incidents or accidents where children can be injured
When your child is away at day camp or summer camp, in day care or any other type of formal, supervised program, your child could be at risk of being injured because of:
- Swimming pool accidents
- Playground equipment accidents
- Physical assault or abuse by staff members
- Sexual assault by staff or other participants
- Unsafe premises
- Failure for the counselors or staff to supervise
- Allowing children to wander off through unlocked doors or gates
- Improperly stored medications or chemicals
Children get hurt a lot, especially when they are young. Their sense of perception is not fully formed yet, and adding other excited children into the mix will increase their odds of sustaining an injury. But when your child suffers because of an act of negligence, or because of a willful act by another person, the liability waiver you signed may not be enough to prevent you from seeking compensation on your child’s behalf for his or her medical bills, educational expenses and pain.
At the end of the day, you do have options. If your child has been injured due to the negligence of their caregiver, you may want to consider consulting with a Memphis personal injury attorney to discuss your case. Your child has a right to compensation when they have been injured by the negligence of another. Please contact Bailey & Greer, PLLC to discuss your case. We proudly serve clients in and around Memphis, Jackson and West Tennessee.
At Bailey & Greer, PLLC we do everything in our power to assuage those fears, and to help our clients find resolutions to their problems. Our Memphis-based law firm offers a wide variety of legal services to individuals and families throughout West Tennessee. When you are hurt, you can trust the injury attorneys of Bailey & Greer.
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