Compensation Claims for Injured Children

In the eyes of the law anyone under the age of 18 is a child and therefore not entitled to bring their own compensation claim. Children under 18 need an adult to act on their behalf, known as their “litigation friend”. This will usually be a relative and most often it is a parent. The role of the litigation friend is to ensure that the child’s interests are protected throughout the litigation, make decisions on the child’s behalf and to pass on instructions to the child’s solicitor during the case.

Although in many ways claiming on behalf of a child is no different to claiming on behalf of an adult – the types of damages a child can claim are basically the same as an adult and the claims process is similar – there are a couple of important differences listed below. For advice on making a compensation claim on behalf of child, contact our Personal Injury Claims team.

Limitation To Claims For Injured Children

Every claim has a limitation period or limitation date, which is the period within which a claim must either be settled or, if settlement cannot be achieved within that period, then proceedings have to be started. Generally speaking the limitation period for an injury or disease claim is 3 years from the date when the victim knew or ought to have known that they had a claim.

However in the case of children the 3 years does not start to run until the child’s 18th birthday. In other words if a child and its parents are injured in a car accident the parent’s limitation period will be 3 years from the date of the accident but the child’s will be 3 years from the child’s 18th birthday which often means that the child has a lot longer in which to bring their claim than an adult. It also means that if your child was injured in an accident some considerable time ago, it may not be too late to claim as long as the child in question is not yet 21 years of age.

Therefore if your child was injured in an accident, even an accident many years ago, and your child is not yet 21 years of age then we advise that you speak to us about the possibility of a claim even if the passage of time presents practical difficulties, say in tracking down witnesses, proving the accident circumstances and so on, it may still be worth speaking to us so that the matter may be investigated further.

Other Differences About Compensation Claims For Children

It is worthwhile noting that sometimes children can claim in circumstances where an adult could not. The Court recognise the vulnerability of children and the additional responsibilities of adults towards children. Consequently children can sometimes claim for injuries sustained in circumstances where, if the victim were an adult, the adult might not be able to blame anybody else.  If in doubt we recommend you contact us for a free consultation and preliminary view on whether or not there may be a claim.

Court Approval

The other crucial difference between claiming on behalf of a child and an adult is that, whereas adults are allowed to settle their claim on whatever terms they think fit, any settlement of a child’s claim has to be approved by the Court. This means that even in the most straightforward of cases the Court have to be notified of and approve the settlement. Insurers will sometimes try and get around this by getting the child’s parents to sign an agreement to the settlement – such agreements are invalid in the eyes of the Court so that if, say, it later transpired that the settlement agreed by the parents was too low, the child might still be able to go back for more compensation.

A child’s damages will nearly always be held in Court, invested by the Court Funds Office until the child reaches 18. The child can then apply for the money to be paid out to them. However the Court will sometimes release at least part of the damages earlier than the child’s 18th birthday as long as the family can prove a genuine need for the money for the child’s benefit.

Funding A Claim On Behalf Of A Child

A child’s claim can be funded in the same way as an adults. So there is no reason why a child’s claim should not be pursued on a conditional fee (or “no win no fee”) basis or perhaps with the benefit of Legal Expenses Insurance.