By Jo Anderson. Last Updated 3rd August 2023. Welcome to our guide on child car accident claims.
You may not be aware of this, but if your child is injured in a car accident that is someone else’s fault, you may be able to make a personal injury claim for their injuries. Sadly, children could become injured in ways that could affect them for the future, and if you are eligible to make a child car accident claim on their behalf, the compensation payout could in some cases cover you for future treatment or care costs in cases where further treatment or care is required. Of course, if your child was in a car accident and you did not make a personal injury claim on their behalf, they could be able to make one themselves once they turn 18. However, you may prefer to make one on their behalf before this time so that all evidence could be easily gathered, and the events could be fresher in the minds of any witnesses.
Child car accident claims
In addition, if you are facing medical costs pertaining to your child’s injury, you may be able to get an interim payout to help you with this, rather than waiting until your child turns 18 if you make a claim on their behalf. We will cover this in more detail later on in this guide, along with taking you through some of the important information you may need to be aware of if you are making personal injury claims for children.
If something in this guide is not clear, or you have more questions about your children’s accident claim, then please do not hesitate to call us for advice on 0800 073 8801. We could even help to provide you with a personal injury solicitor to help you make a children’s injury claim. You can read more about our services near the end of this child car accident claims guide.
Select A Section
- What Are Child Car Accidents?
- Child Car Accident Whiplash Injury Claims
- How Do Child Car Accident Claims Work?
- Who Could Be A Litigation Friend?
- What Steps Should I Take If My Child Is Injured In A Car Accident?
- Time Limits To Make A Child Car Accident Claim
- Child Car Accident Personal Injury Claim Payouts
- Other Damages Which Could Be Claimed For
- No Win No Fee Child Car Accident Claims
- Essential Links
What Are Child Car Accidents?
Before we look at child car claims, let’s first look at what these accidents could involve.
Essentially, if another road user was at fault for an accident your child was in, then you could consider making a child car accident claim on their behalf. Being in an accident could be traumatic enough for you, but if your child is injured, it could cause you to suffer mentally as well, and while nothing could take back the experience of your child being injured, a compensation payout could make a difference to your child’s level of treatment and even their recovery. It could even make a difference to their future. Whether the child car accident was serious or only minor, if your child were injured, you may want to get them compensation sooner rather than later, in case it becomes harder over time to preserve evidence for your child to use making their own case after they turn 18.
In other cases, you may have an immediate need for funds to help pay for medical treatment that you may not be able to afford alone, and a compensation payout could help with this, too, along with providing compensation for future medical costs as well.
Child Car Accident Whiplash Injury Claims
You could make a claim for whiplash injuries sustained by a child.
Whiplash could be considered a common injury stemming from road traffic accidents, and if you are wondering about making a children’s car injury claim for whiplash, there may be a few things you’d like to know.
Whiplash is an injury that is caused by a jolting movement to the head, either backwards and forwards or sideways. When the head jerks in this manner, it could cause injury to the neck by stretching and damaging the tendons and soft tissues in the neck.
Whiplash symptoms do not always appear straight away after an accident, and you may not initially think about making a child car accident compensation claim immediately after an accident because you may think your child isn’t injured. However, it may be best for you to get your child checked out after any car accident in order to ensure that they have not suffered damage that is not immediately visible. If your child seems to have a stiff neck, headache or complains of pain some days after an accident, this could be the onset of whiplash, so you may wish to get them to a doctor.
How Do Child Car Accident Claims Work?
A child is not considered to have the capacity to make a compensation claim for themselves. However, someone could be appointed on their behalf to claim for them. This person would be referred to as a litigation friend. Alternatively, you could wait until your child was 18, and they could claim for themselves if they choose to do so. However, it may be a little more difficult for them to gather evidence at this time, so some parents of children aged under 18 may choose to act on their behalf to make a claim.
Payouts for child car accident claims of this type are sometimes held in trust for a child until they reach 18. However, in some circumstances, funds could be released to pay for medical care, etc. If you would like to know more about this, our advisors would be happy to talk this over with you.
Who Could Be A Litigation Friend?
It may be possible for you to act as a litigation friend in certain circumstances. This would enable you to make some decision about court cases on behalf of:
- An adult that did not have sufficient mental capacity to make a decision about their case
- A child (for example, in these kinds of child car accident claims)
Anyone could be appointed a litigation friend by the court. Examples could include:
- A family member or friend
- A parent or guardian
- A solicitor
- An advocate (professional) – could include an Independent Mental Capacity Advocate
- A deputy from the Court of Protection
- A person with enduring or lasting power of attorney
To ascertain whether you would be suitable for the position, the court would check to make sure you don’t have conflicting interests to theirs and that you are able to make fair and competent decisions. You would be required to fill out a certificate of suitability as part of an application to be a litigation friend. If a child turns 18 during the case, you might be required to apply to stop being their litigation friend.
What Steps Should I Take If My Child Is Injured In A Car Accident?
There are various things you could do if your child is injured in a car accident to help give your child car accident claims the best chance of success. Steps you could take after taking your child to get medical treatment might include:
- Write everything down – Taking down notes could help job your memory if you forget exactly what happened in your child’s car accident
- Take photos – Getting photographic evidence of the scene and any injuries could be useful
- Get people’s details – Not just for the motorist that may have caused the accident but also for any witnesses
- Keep proof – Any expenses you’ve faced due to the accident could be claimed for as part of a child car accident claim if you’re able to provide proof that they directly arose from the car accident your child was injured in
- Get professional help – At a time that you may feel is already stressful, going through a child car accident claim alone could add even more stress. Getting help from a solicitor with experience in the field could take some of the stress from your shoulders when it comes to making such claims so that you could concentrate on helping your child recover
At Accident Claims UK, we could provide guidance and support on all the steps you might want to take when making a car accident claim for a child in the UK, as well as helping connect you with a solicitor who could help you obtain child car accident compensation.
Time Limits To Make A Child Car Accident Claim
Did you know that child car accident claims have time limits within which they must be made?
The usual personal injury claims time limit for a car accident is 3 years from the accident date (although there are some exceptions). However, in child car accident cases, it may be possible for a child to claim for themselves once they turn 18. If a claim is in progress as a child turns 18, they may then take over decision making during the case, which would end the litigation friend’s responsibility for making decisions regarding their claim. If you are nearing your child’s 18th birthday and are still thinking of making a child car accident claim on their behalf, then why not call us to discuss all of your options?
Child Car Accident Personal Injury Claim Payouts
Are you wondering how much compensation might be paid if your child is injured in a car accident?
Whether you have used a personal injury claims calculator before or researched payouts online in another way, it may be prudent to note that a child injury compensation calculator or online research could not put an accurate sum on your potential payout, as there are too many variants between cases. Instead, we have provided a snapshot of Judicial College Guideline amounts for specific injuries that a person could suffer in a car accident. We hope you find this easy to use, but if your injury doesn’t appear here, you could call us for clarification.
| Child’s Injury | Payout | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Neck injuries – Moderate | £24,990 to £38,490 | Dislocations/fractures with serious immediate symptoms and where spinal fusion might be required. They could impair function long-term. |
| Neck injuries – Moderate | £13,740 to £24,990 | Involving wrench injuries and potentially disc lesions that are severe. There may be a need for surgery or the claimant might be more vulnerable to trauma in the future. |
| Arm injuries – less severe | £19,200 to £39,170 | At first there may have been severe disabilities but these may have resolved significantly over time. |
| Leg injuries – less serious | £17,960 to £27,760 | Fracture where recovery is incomplete, or cases of serious soft tissue damage. |
| Fracture to Tibia | Up to £11,840 | With ongoing minor symptoms |
| Scarring | £7,830 to £22,730 | One single disfiguring scar, or several noticeable ones, on the hands, back, arms, legs, or chest. |
| Forearm fracture – simple | £6,610 to £19,200 | |
| Clavicle fracture | £5,150 to £12,240 | Awards would be calculated based on level of displacement, how severe symptoms were, and what residual symptoms remain, as well as the level of disability. |
Other Damages Which Could Be Claimed For
Here are some damages that could be compensated as part of your child car accident claims.
As well as the amounts listed above, which could be classed as ‘general damages’, your child car accident claim may include another type of compensation, known as special damages. This covers the monetary losses and costs that have arisen directly from a child car accident and could include:
- Care costs – If your child has required some form of care that you have had to pay for, then this could be covered under special damages
- Medical costs – Likewise, if medical costs could also be considered special damages
- Travel costs – Travel to medical appointments and other travel occurring as a direct result of the child car accident such as travel to legal appointments may be considered special damages
- Loss of income – You may also be able to claim compensation for losses in wages that you have borne as you have needed to stay off work to care for your child.
In some cases, an interim payment may be able to be secured as part of your claim to ensure you do not face further financial hardship because of your child car accident. It could be wise to speak to a lawyer if you feel this is something that could benefit you.
No Win No Fee Child Car Accident Claims
If you are eligible to make a car accident claim for a child, you may wish to have a legal professional help you. One of our solicitors could help you with the claiming process. Furthermore, they may offer to represent you under a type of No Win No Fee arrangement known as a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).
Under such an agreement, you will not need to pay your solicitor anything upfront or throughout the process of the claim for their services. Should your claim fail, you will not have to pay your solicitor for their work on the claim.
Alternatively, should they succeed, you will pay your solicitor a success fee. This is a small, legally capped percentage deducted from the compensation awarded.
For more information on the child in a car accident claim process or to see if one of our No Win No Fee solicitors could assist you, you can contact our advisors. They can be reached via:
- Calling 0800 073 8801
- Using our live chat.
- Contacting us online.
Essential Links
Accident Statistics For UK Roads – Here, you can see some of the latest statistics on RTAs.
Road Traffic Act – Here, you can see the Road Traffic Act 1988.
Information On Child Compensation Payouts – The government offers some advice on what happens with child compensation payments.
General Information On Whiplash Claims – Here, you could find some more information about whiplash claims.
Was Your Child Injured As A Pedestrian? – You might find some useful information in our guide on pedestrian accidents.
Injuries To Cyclists – Guidance and support for cyclists injured on UK roads could be found here.
Victim Support
You may find help for parents of children injured in road accidents in the UK below:
Brake – Emotional support for victims of sudden injuries, deaths or illnesses could be found here.
Children And Young People (Victim Support) – A useful resource for help for young victims.
Thank you for reading our guide on child car accident claims.