Injuries to Kids in Cars

After Injuries Caused by Accidents or Auto Defects, Parents Should Know Their Right to Compensation

Automobile accidents are the number one cause of death and disability among teenagers in this country. Seeing one’s child catastrophically injured or killed in a preventable accident is one of the worst things a parent can face. The experience is devastating emotionally and financially.

U.S. National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) statistics show that, in 2018, 636 children under the age of 12 died in car accidents, and more than 97,000 were injured. The same year, car accidents were responsible for almost 2,500 teen deaths and 285,000 emergency room trips among people between 13 and 19 years of age. These numbers are not just statistics—they are records of lives and families forever changed. Our attorneys are here to help those whose children suffered severe or fatal injuries in a car accident.

Call us at (888) 711-5947 for a free consultation. No matter where you are in America, our caring team wants to know how we can help you.

What A Family Can Do When a Child Is Injured

Children can be injured in automobiles in many ways, through traffic-related and non-traffic related accidents. The first step is to figure out who or what was responsible for the injury. Sometimes, it’s easy to point to another driver who was not paying attention. In other cases, you need a strong investigative team on your side to help you identify a defect and show how it was to blame.

Once we have determined liability, our attorneys can help you understand your right to file a claim. We always give our clients an honest estimation of their chances in a case. Below, we list some of the situations our attorneys have helped clients through.

Non-Traffic Related Accidents

Children can be injured in a car without being in a traffic accident by, among other things:

• Car Window Defects - Car windows can close on children and cause serious injury. Even though there are several safety features in most cars designed to prevent this, these accidents still happen, and children choke before they can be rescued.
• Door & Trunk Lock Defects - Kids may get locked in the trunk of a car, unable to get out.
• Accidental back-over and run-over - Children may get run over because of bad visibility in the front or rear window.
• Brake shift interlock failure - Most cars cannot be put into gear unless the brake pedal is depressed. However, this safety device can fail. In some cars, it is not even equipped, leading to a higher chance of injury.

Traffic-Related Accidents

In automobile accidents, children are especially vulnerable. Especially if a vehicle’s safety features are not designed and manufactured to the highest standards, they may suffer serious injuries including:

• Brain Injury - This can be caused by even a minor impact if the child is not properly restrained and can lead to lifelong disabilities like paralysis and cognitive challenges.
• Spinal Cord Injuries - These are some of the most devastating injuries possible for children, robbing the child of their mobility and enjoyment of life.

These injuries can be caused by one or more of the following defects:

• Seatbelt Failure - Not using a seatbelt can lead to serious injuries from a minor accident, but some seatbelts are designed so poorly they may cause injury. Seatbelt design defects include an inability to adjust to a size small enough for a child or the failure of a seatbelt to properly align with the seat design.
• Airbags Deploying Incorrectly – The forces involved in airbag inflation can be dangerous for children if proper safety precautions are not implemented by an automaker.
• Defects in Children’s Car Seats - A substantial percentage of children’s car seats have been found to be defective through the years, suffering from manufacturing defects, poor construction, and bad instructions. Despite years of public pressure on manufacturers, this is still an issue and causes many preventable injuries each year.
• Seatback Failure - Even at low impact speed, the collapse of a seatback can cause devastating injury or even death if a child is impacted. Unfortunately, the only way to know if a seatback is designed poorly is after a crash injures someone.
• Structural and Design Defects in Cars - Rear windows can be too small to see out of, and door locks, seatbelts, and airbags can be defective, among other potentially dangerous problems with cars. Defective tires can also cause accidents when a driver loses control of the car.

Call our office at (888) 711-5947 to speak with one of our experienced team members. We offer free consultations to parents whose children were injured in cars.