You did all you could to choose a safe daycare for your child, but the daycare let you down. Your child was hurt, and you’re trying to figure out what to do next. Our Texas daycare negligence attorneys walk you through the next steps of making an incident report and what to do when a daycare won’t make one.
Why Making An Incident Report Matters When Your Child is Hurt at Daycare
The first and most critical step is to ask the daycare to create an incident report. Regardless of the injury's severity, it's essential to document what happened, when it occurred, and who was supervising your child. Getting this report as soon as possible ensures accuracy while the details are still fresh in everyone's memory.
Another important reason to request an incident report is that daycare centers tend to downplay the situation to protect themselves. If a case were to arise from the injury and they were to change their story on what happened months after, the incident report would (hopefully) have the truth.
Reporting a daycare facility extends beyond documenting just physical injuries; it also encompasses reporting instances of a teacher's negligent or improper conduct. Unfortunately, such incidents are frequently overlooked, either due to the daycare center's attempts to protect its reputation or because the child lacks the means or courage to communicate. Shedding light on these concerns is imperative for instigating change and nurturing our children's psychological development. If children are consistently exposed to aggression, anger, and irritation from their teachers at daycare, they may replicate these behaviors at home. Thus, addressing these issues is vital for fostering a positive environment conducive to healthy emotional growth.
To learn more, check out our article on everything you need to know about reporting daycare injuries for more guidance.
What If the Daycare Won’t Make a Report For My Child's Injury?
There have been occasions where parents seek to file an incident report, only to be informed by the daycare that reports are reserved for serious injuries. This practice is concerning and compromises safety. Regardless of severity, every incident should be documented, as parents have the right to be informed about any occurrences involving their child.
If the daycare does not want to give you an incident report, make one yourself:
- Take a piece of paper, write out the date and what happened (to your best understanding), when it happened (time) and where (daycare facility and exactly what part of the daycare facility).
- Include details you were told and how the staff acted.
- Include details of how you found out.
- Sign it, make a copy, and hand them a copy, but you keep the original. This is to ensure them that you know it exists. If you do this but give the daycare facility your only copy, it may not exist later on.
- Write down the first and last name of the person that you handed it to.
- It’s very important that you ask for a copy of the incident report. Daycare centers are supposed to keep copies, but they often don’t. Another reason to keep the incident report is that if you are planning on taking your child out, they will not have the record in hand when a lawyer gets involved.
We have a full, five-step guide for parents who need to report a daycare injury. You can request your free copy of our guide by clicking here..
When Will I Get the Incident Report From The Daycare?
You will typically receive the incident report anywhere from 15 to 45 days. Once it’s finished, the family will receive a letter in the mail. In that letter, the family has the option to make an open record request to receive the investigation materials to see what caused an injury to their child.
You can also find more information on incident reports in our article, Lessons Learned About Making Incident Reports At Texas Daycare Centers.
Dallas Daycare Negligence Attorney Warns Against Common Daycare Defense
When an injury does occur, teachers and caregivers like to say “kids will be kids,” and sometimes don’t even let parents know that their child was injured. They do this to avoid getting into trouble with their facility. No one has the right to keep that important information from the child’s parents of the event that happened. Many bad daycare centers are still up and running because no one wants to speak up about an injury, fearing that their jobs would be in jeopardy. Until they are held accountable, the most common daycare injuries will continue to happen, and we need to see it stop.
When a child is injured while at daycare, it is not just “kids will be kids.” Not only is the daycare center's motto wrong, but it is an excuse to cover up negligent behavior and not take full responsibility for themselves. Unfortunately, Texas minimum standards are not always enough, and many daycare facilities do this and are still up and running with no consequences. They will continue to get away with it until they are held accountable.
Check out our article on Why Daycare Centers Try To Cover Up Their System Failures to learn more.
How Our Team of Daycare Negligence Attorneys Can Help
As a Daycare Negligence Attorney, I feel for anyone whose child has been hurt while attending a Dallas daycare. It’s not fair to your child, and it’s not fair to you. You researched your options when you were choosing a daycare and trusted the facility to hire qualified daycare employees and to prevent anything from happening to your child. They let you down.
I started my Texas daycare injury law firm to help keep kids safe at daycare and to ensure that negligent daycares are held accountable, and my team of daycare negligence attorneys and I are here to help guide you through this process.
Each case is different, and the injuries affect each child and their family differently. We make sure to independently analyze each injury and the effect it has on the family.
Care for your child can go well beyond a trip to the emergency room, and the following damages are allowed under a daycare case:
● Medical expenses from the past and the future
● Mental anguish for the child and physical impairment of their daily activities
If your child is injured at daycare and receives medical treatment, who pays the medical bills is a question that you may be wondering about. You may have to pay the medical providers back or reimburse them under the law for injuries caused by a third party.
If you have health insurance, Medicaid, or Medicare that covers your child’s injuries, they will need to be paid back for what was paid out for injuries related to the case, which is also called subrogation or reimbursement. We handle this as it is complex and can be time-consuming as there are a lot of hoops to jump through.
Contacting The Button Law Firm After a Daycare Incident or Injury
Our team of experienced and compassionate daycare injury attorneys at The Button Law Firm is dedicated to fighting for you and your family if your child is abused while in the care of a negligent daycare center. With attorneys in Dallas, Houston, and Midland, we are ready to listen, fight for your family, and help your family move forward. Our attorneys at The Button Law Firm are recognized on the prestigious Texas Super Lawyers list, and we can help guide you after a traumatizing incident involving your child. We work on contingency, meaning we don’t charge you or collect any upfront fees to get started on your case. Get a free consultation by calling 214-699-4409, emailing us at [email protected], or completing a contact form.
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