What Should You Do if Your Child is Hit by a Vehicle

Every parent’s worst fear is seeing their child being hurt. Unfortunately, many children each year are hit by vehicles. These pedestrian accidents can cause severe injuries, and in some cases, even cause death.

There are ways to help prevent this, such as making sure you and your child always obey the rules of the road when you’re walking and making sure that your child holds your hand and stays nearby.

However, even if parents take the proper safety measures, accidents can still happen if a driver is being negligent and not obeying road rules or paying attention to the road. So, what should you do if your child is injured by a vehicle?

The first thing you’ll obviously do is check on your child’s safety. You’ll want to check for injuries, get your child to a safe spot to sit or lie down, and call 9-1-1 to have emergency medical personal come to the scene.

Once you know your child is safe, you’ll want to document the scene of the crash if you can. Take photos, of the vehicle, the crash site, and any injuries your child has. Talk to any eyewitness if you can and get their contact information. You can even ask them if you can record their statements on your phone. While this may seem like overkill, it can help you if you when you’re trying to file a claim or if you end up in court.

Next, you’ll want to document any medical appointments and treatments that your child undergoes as a result of the accident. You want to be able to show the emotional, medical, and other costs that the accident has caused.

The reason for this is that you don’t want to be left with tons of medical bills and other expenses as a result of an accident that wasn’t you or your child’s fault. If the driver was negligent, but you are unable to get a settlement from his or her insurance company, you may need to hire a lawyer who can help you file a personal injury claim.

In order to win a personal injury claim after being involved in a pedestrian accident, victims must to show that their injuries were not their fault and were caused by the driver being negligent. If the driver has a lawyer, that lawyer may try to pin fault on the victim, so it is important that the victim also seek legal representation if this is the case. According to St. Louis MO Pedestrian accident attorney, Benjamin Sansone, 30% of pedestrian related accidents are hit and run accidents, and many more of these accidents are caused by drivers failing to yield when they should or breaking other traffic laws. As a parent, you are the one who seeks justice on behalf of your child, who is not old enough to represent him or herself.

If your child has been hurt by a careless driver while walking, don’t let your family suffer alone. As Howard Spiva, a personal injury attorney in Savannah, GA explains, you need to take the steps you need to get compensation, so that you can help your child heal without having to worry about piling up medical bills or not being able to work. There are many expert attorneys who can help if you need a lawyer, so reach out for assistance today.