When you drop your child off at a daycare center, there’s a reasonable expectation that the staff will provide adequate care in a safe environment. If your child gets hurt while under the supervision of the daycare provider, you have every right to seek justice.
Child injuries can range from small cuts and bruises to major ones that require hospitalization. Other signs of abuse, such as psychological or sexual, might not be too obvious—and could manifest themselves in the form of child behavioral problems.
The underlying cause of these injuries is often the result of negligence or intentional acts by the daycare facility. If your child is injured at a daycare facility, you need a daycare negligence attorney who will fight hard for your rights.
Childcare Provider Duty Of Care
Duty of Care is a legal term that requires childcare providers to adhere to a reasonable standard of care while performing their job. This includes:
- A written policy that forbids any and all mental, emotional, sexual, and physical abuse
- Easy access to first aid equipment
- The correct child-to-caregiver ratio
- Adequate bathrooms
- Easy access to water
- Easy access to food as per the schedule
- Adequate safety standards
- A “safety plan” that prevents “wandering” (when the child leaves the daycare premises on their own accord—without adult supervision)
Types of Daycare Negligence
Daycare negligence can come in many forms, such as:
- Emotional or physical abuse
- Lack of adequate supervision
- Lack of staff training or background checks
- Unsafe facility
- Poor hygiene
- Inadequate access to water, bathrooms, and food
- Unsanitary premises
Establishing Causation
Establishing a claim for negligence requires you to prove that the daycare facility had a duty of care, it breached that duty, and due to the breach, your child was injured. It is important to consult with reputable daycare negligence counsel to gather the necessary facts and evidence to establish causation.
Before agreeing to a settlement in the insurance company, you should have a daycare negligence attorney review the proposed offer to ensure it’s in your best interests. Keep in mind that you lose your right to file a lawsuit once you agree to a settlement. Also, know that a child has an expanded statue of limitations to bring a claim and no case should be settled without knowing the full extent of the child’s injuries.
Your child may have suffered latent and extensive injuries that will require years of expensive medical and/or psychological care. The insurance companies only have their best interests in mind—to pay out as little money as possible.
A daycare negligence attorney can help you determine if the proposed settlement will be enough to help provide adequate care to remedy the damage done.
Common and Not-So-Common Signs of Child Abuse and Injury
The common signs of child abuse or injury are usually readily apparent. Bruises, cuts, or the child complaining are often key indicators that something is wrong.
However, are also several not-so-common signs of child abuse, such as psychological and sexual abuse, that can be very difficult for a parent to diagnose. You will need to have a licensed medical or psychological professional examine your child in these types of suspected situations. Alternatively, counselors and therapists such as play therapy professionals often times can ascertain the nature and extent of abuse.
What Should You Do If You Suspect Your Child Has Been Harmed or Injured at Daycare?
In addition to immediately reaching out to Quinn Law Centers, if you suspect your child has been injured or harmed at their daycare center, you should do the following:
- Take pictures
- Get witness statements (and contact info)
- Construct a timeline while it’s still fresh in your mind
- Gather up any paperwork
- Take your child to a doctor or other medical professional (such as a play therapist) and get a written professional medical opinion
- Capture any and all information from the daycare website with regard to staff and any representations made by the daycare
- Check the Virginia Department of Social Services website for other complaints and citations.
- Talk to other parents to see if they’ve noticed any signs or have suspicions that their child has been harmed or abused
Child Injury and Daycare Negligence Case Results
If you suspect your child has been injured at their daycare center, give us a call. At Quinn Law Centers, our compassionate attorneys will work hard to ensure that you and your child get the justice that you deserve.
Sample cases we have handled include:
- Over-heated milk bottle causing third degree burns
- Broken arm from unsupervised fall
- Smashed fingers from shutting child in bathroom for time out and rapidly opening door with child’s hands caught in door frame (actually caught on video)
- Child left at the park after daycare field trip, and found in public men’s room
- Overly swaddled child, leaving extensive bruising and marks
- Physically abused children during diaper changing and toilet training
- Adding water to infant’s formula to make a child sleep longer
- Infant death in crib not being safety compliant, improper supervision, and insufficient staff to child ratio.