Children are involved in accidents every day; whether at school, in the playground, or at home. Quite often this is simply a pure accident that is no one’s fault. However, children can be the victims of other people’s careless behaviour, just the same as adults.
Young people suffer injuries in pretty much the same sort of circumstances that adults do, whether it is as a passenger in a car, tripping or slipping in a public place or because of a faulty product.
Children are more vulnerable than adults and this means that people in situations involving children have to take extra care to ensure that they do not cause harm to children because of their carelessness. It also means that children can claim compensation in situations where adults could not; for example if a child has an accident because they were not being supervised properly.
Under English law, a minor cannot take legal action on their own – usually, anyone under the age of 18 will need someone to bring a personal injury claim on their behalf. The adult acting on behalf of the injured minor is called a “Litigation Friend”. Usually, this will be a parent or guardian, but can be anyone who is close enough to the minor and can be proven to act in their best interests. The Litigation Friend must be independent and cannot act if they were in anyway responsible for the accident.
The Litigation Friend has almost the same rights over the claim as if it was their own. However, they must always act in the best interests of the child and it is usual for the solicitor dealing with the claim to get approval from the court for any settlement to a child’s compensation claim. This protects both the child and the Litigation Friend.
Any compensation paid is invested in a special account for the child that they can only access when they reach 18. However, in many cases it is possible to apply to the court for some or all of the money to be paid early where this is necessary to help the child, such as if they need to pay for medical care or to adapt the family home.
Normally, when someone is injured, they will lose their right to claim compensation if they do not claim within 3 years of the date of the accident. However, if a claim was not made on behalf of an injured child, they can still claim for up to 3 years after their 18th birthday. This is the case even if they were injured as a baby. However, it is usually better to claim as soon as possible after the accident because it will be easier to obtain any evidence, to find the correct defendant and to recall the facts of the accident.
The Injury Lawyers can take on claims made on behalf of children on a Genuine No Win No Fee basis, just the same as for adults making their own claim.
