At Public Interest Lawyers, we understand how devastating it can be to see your child injured from an accident at school. It can also be devastating to be in an accident yourself as a visitor, parent, or school staff member. This is why in this guide, we explain in detail everything you need to know about making an accident at school claim.
We start by explaining the eligibility requirements that need to be met for public liability claims following an accident at a school that involved your child or you as a visitor. Additionally, we share examples of accidents that could lead to a compensation claim and the types of compensation that could be awarded in such cases. Furthermore, we discuss the various benefits of working with a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel.
You can get a free, no-obligation evaluation of your case and find out today whether you can claim personal injury compensation. Just know that you can contact us 24/7 for free advice and guidance:
- Call 0800 408 7825
- Fill out our contact us form.
- Send a message into our live on-screen chat box.
Jump To A Section
- Who Can Make School Accident Claims?
- What Are Some Common School Accidents?
- Who Would An Accident At School Claim Be Against?
- What Compensation Could Be Paid For Accidents At School?
- The Time Limits For School Accident Claims
- How To Prove That The School Was Liable For The Accident
- What Public Interest Lawyers Can Do For You
- More Information
Who Can Make School Accident Claims?
School children, staff, visitors, and parents can all make an accident at school claim if negligence occurred.
Negligence forms the basis of the claims eligibility criteria, and is when:
- You were owed a duty of care.
- This duty of care was breached.
- You sustained an injury as a direct result of this breach.
All schools and educational institutions owe a duty of care to all school children, staff, and visitors (including parents). This means they must take steps to ensure that everyone on the school premises is reasonably safe, as per their duty of care.
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 generally outlines a school’s duty of care towards their staff, whereas Section 4 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 specifically outlines a school’s duty of care towards their pupils and visitors.
To confirm the eligibility of your accident at school claim, please contact us today and have a chat with our team. To learn more about how a school’s duty of care can be breached, please continue reading.
What Is A Litigation Friend?
A litigation friend is a court-appointed individual who can claim compensation on behalf of someone else who is unable to make their own claim. This could include cases such as:
- Those under the age of 18.
- Those lacking the mental capacity.
This individual is usually a loved one of the claimant, and they make decisions and manage legal proceedings in the best interests of the claimant.
For more information on litigation friends, please continue reading this guide or contact us today.
What Are Some Common School Accidents?
Here are some examples of how a school can breach their duty of care and cause a school accident:
- A teacher failed to provide a student with protective eye goggles during an experiment in science class. This resulted in chemical burns and eye injuries.
- The school failed to perform any recent maintenance checks on the school’s playground equipment, and therefore failed to notice that the climbing frame was faulty. This led to a student falling and hitting their head.
- There was a spillage in the reception area of the school, but no wet floor signs were displayed next to the spillage. Because of this, a visitor to the school slipped and fell, leading to a fractured arm.
- There are trailing cables in the school staff room that had not been tidied away or signposted. From this, a teacher tripped and fell over the loose cables, which resulted in them fracturing their ankle and wrist.
If these examples of negligence are similar to what you or your child has suffered, then please talk to us today about your specific school accident. Negligence in a school could also occur in many other ways, so it’s best to enquire about your personal injury claim eligibility with us.
Who Would An Accident At School Claim Be Against?
In most cases, you would make a school accident compensation claim against the school’s operators rather than against an individual school staff member.
- For state schools, the local authority is usually the operator.
- For private schools, the owner will be the operator.
While school accident claims are made against the operator, the school’s public liability insurance will cover any compensation that is paid out.
Contact our advisors today to discuss your particular case.
What Compensation Could Be Paid For Accidents At School?
If your accident at school claim is successful, you could be paid compensation for two types of losses:
The first is general damages, which covers compensation for the physical and psychological impacts of the school injury, taking into account factors such as:
- The severity of your pain.
- How long the expected recovery time takes.
- How your quality of life has been affected since the injury.
Legal professionals often use a document called the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to help them value general damages. The JCG contains guideline compensation amounts for different types of injuries.
We have used the JCG to create the table below. These are just some types of injuries that could be sustained from a school accident. But, please only view this table for guidance, as none of the values in the JCG can be guaranteed for any particular case. Also, the top figure is not from the JCG.
| Injury type | Injury severity | Guideline compensation brackets |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple serious injuries plus special damages | Serious | Up to £1,000,000+ |
| Brain damage | Moderately severe (b) | £267,340 to £344,150 |
| Less severe (d) | £18,700 to £52,550 | |
| Arm | Severe (a) | £117,360 to £159,770 |
| Simple forearm fracture (d) | £8,060 to £23,430 | |
| Ankle | Very severe (a) | £61,090 to £85,070 |
| Modest (d) | Up to £16,770 | |
| Wrist | Complete loss of function (a) | £58,710 to £73,050 |
| Less severe (c) | £15,370 to £29,900 |
The second head of compensation you could be awarded is special damages, which covers compensation for the costs you’ve incurred as a direct result of the school injury, such as:
- Loss of earnings for needing time off work to recover or to look after your injured child.
- Medical expenses, such as prescriptions.
- Travel costs from attending medical appointments.
- Childcare costs if you are unable to look after your child due to your injuries.
- The cost of mobility aids or home adjustments.
Payslips, bank statements, receipts, and invoices can all prove your special damages. So, it is essential to keep as many of these documents as possible in order to be reimbursed for your injury’s costs.
To learn more about how much compensation can be awarded in a successful personal injury compensation claim, please contact us today. We can give you a specific estimated evaluation tailored to your circumstances.
The Time Limits For School Accident Claims
The time limit to begin an accident at school claim is usually 3 years, as per the Limitation Act 1980. This time limit commences from the date the school accident took place.
However, in a couple of circumstances, this time limit is temporarily paused. One of these circumstances is for those who are mentally incapacitated. In these cases, the time limit is paused indefinitely, unless this mental capacity is regained. In this instance, the time limit will then run from this date of recovery.
While the time limit is paused, a litigation friend may step in on the claimant’s behalf.
Are The Time Limits Different For Children?
Yes, the other circumstance where the time limit is temporarily paused is for those who are under 18. In these cases, the time limit is paused until the date of the child’s 18th birthday.
Similarly, while the time limit is paused, a litigation friend (such as the child’s parent) may step in on the claimant’s behalf.
If your child has been injured in an accident at school that wasn’t their fault, please contact us today about becoming a litigation friend and claiming compensation on their behalf.
How To Prove That The School Was Liable For The Accident
To prove that the school was liable for the accident, you should collect as much of the following evidence as possible:
- Copies of correspondence between you and the school (e.g. letters, emails).
- A copy of the accident reported in the school’s accident log book.
- Medical evidence, such as copies of medical records detailing yours or your child’s injuries.
- Contact information from anyone who witnessed the accident. They could provide a witness statement at a later stage in the claims process.
- Video footage of the accident, if available.
- Photographs of the visible effects of the injuries.
- Photographs of what caused the accident, if available. For example, trailing cables in a classroom.
- A personal medical treatment and symptoms diary.
Your evidence must prove that school negligence happened. But you don’t have to collect all of this evidence by yourself. If you are connected with a solicitor from our panel, they will help you collect evidence, so you can focus on recovery.
To see whether you can be connected with a solicitor from our panel, please contact us today.
What Public Interest Lawyers Can Do For You
If we connect you with an expert solicitor from our panel, there are many things they can do for you to make the school accident claims process easier:
- Collect evidence on your behalf.
- Send correspondence on your behalf.
- Use their years of past experience to ensure your compensation covers all of the losses and impacts.
- Keep you informed on any developments with the case.
- Explain any legal jargon.
- Ensure that the relevant time limits are met.
- Work with you on a No Win No Fee basis.
The specific type of No Win No Fee agreement that our panel of personal injury lawyers could offer you is called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This means that:
- You pay zero solicitor service fees to get the claim started.
- You pay zero solicitor service fees all throughout the claims process.
- If your claim doesn’t win, you pay zero solicitor service fees.
- If your claim does win, a small percentage of your compensation will just be taken by your solicitor instead. This small percentage is called the ‘success fee’ and is capped by the law.
So, if you would like your accident at school claim to be represented under a CFA, please contact us today.
Contact Us
Our advisors can give you full guidance for free on what your next steps should be and how to claim compensation. You can contact us at any time that best suits you:
- Call 0800 408 7825
- Fill out our contact us form.
- Send a message into our live on-screen chat box.
More Information
For more of our guides, please browse below:
- How to claim compensation for a broken bone injury.
- Advice on whether you should accept a personal injury offer without a solicitor.
- Learn about claiming for food poisoning,
Additionally, you might find the information on these pages useful:
- Gov.UK – information on the law regarding responsibilities and duties for schools.
- NHS – find the nearest emergency care services near you.
- Gov.UK – how to request CCTV footage of yourself.
Please remember, you can call us for free at any time. We can answer any of your questions about how to make an accident at school claim, whether on behalf of yourself, your child, or someone else you know.