What to Do If Your Child Was Injured at Daycare (2026 Guide)

Parents entrust daycares with the safety of their children every day, so when daycare injuries occur, it can be a troubling and traumatic event, especially for the child. The daycare injury lawyers from Zinda Law Group are here to help parents seek compensation against the liable daycare facility.

The process of filing a claim can be overwhelming, especially when you are concerned about the health of your child. Zinda Law Group has experienced daycare injury lawyers who can protect you and your child’s rights.

If you’re not sure whether what happened counts as negligence, check our blog on who’s to blame when a child is injured at daycare walks through how that’s decided.

What Are My First Steps?

After a daycare injury, there are certain steps that you should take to preserve your compensation claim. For example, studying the daycare’s accident and injury policy will be helpful as it will most likely contain pertinent information about who can answer your questions from the daycare.

Furthermore, it’s important to exercise due diligence to ensure that the daycare and its employees are licensed childcare service providers. Below are some important steps to follow if your child has been injured at daycare:

1. Get medical treatment for your child

The first and most important step after a daycare accident is to get medical treatment for your child. Of course, your ability to get your child the medical care they need depends on whether the daycare notifies you after the accident. Once you receive the phone call or message that your child has suffered an injury you should inquire as to the severity of the injury and ask what treatment has been given.
If you feel that you’re missing details regarding your child’s injury, you should go to the daycare to see the injury for yourself. Additionally, if you have concerns about whether your child’s injury is being properly treated, there is nothing wrong with having an ambulance go to the daycare to make sure that your child’s injuries are not getting worse.

2. Document your child’s injury

Once you’re aware of your child’s injury, you should ask for documentation from the daycare. In Texas, for example, the state requires daycare centers to report all incidents and injuries that happened to children while at daycare. Accordingly, each daycare should have a policy in place for creating an incident report.
If the daycare facility fails to create this report, try to obtain information from other sources such as the police, ambulance, or your child. Unfortunately, many children can’t fully communicate their injury or how it occurred, but as their parents, you can pay close attention to them and look for changes in their behavior.

3. Consult an experienced daycare injury attorney

Lastly, contact a daycare injury attorney who can help you seek the highest monetary compensation from at-fault parties and insurance companies. An experienced attorney can help educate you about your legal rights, relevant filing deadlines, and the viability of your claim. In some cases, the evidence an experienced attorney gets through in-depth investigations can be so strong that the daycare and insurance companies may seek a timely settlement instead of a trial to avoid extra costs.

Evidence to Gather After a Daycare Injury

Medical Care and Evidence

See a doctor: take your child to a clinic or hospital for a full checkup, even if the daycare already treated the injury on-site, and keep copies of all medical bills and notes.
Take photos: capture clear pictures of the injury itself and the exact spot where the accident happened, before anything gets cleaned up or repaired.
Save items: keep any torn clothing or broken items connected to the accident. Don’t wash or discard them.

Reporting and Communication

Get the report: request an official written accident report from the daycare director, not just a verbal account.
Talk to witnesses: write down the names and phone numbers of any teachers or other parents who saw what happened, while the details are still fresh.
Stay calm: keep your own notes clear and factual when you talk to daycare staff. Anything you say can end up being relevant later.

What Type of Accident Is the Leading Cause of Injury in Childcare?

Falls are the leading cause of injury in childcare settings. CDC data shows more than 1.3 million children under age nine were treated in emergency rooms for unintentional falls in a single recent year, and over 200,000 children under 14 are injured on playgrounds annually. Kids ages five to nine visit the ER most often for playground-related injuries. Other common causes include being struck by objects, choking or suffocation, burns, and cuts, but falls account for more injuries than any other single cause.

Who Is Liable If Your Child Was Injured In Daycare?

After a child suffers a daycare injury, there are multiple parties that you could potentially sue. The most common defendants in daycare injury cases are:

The daycare facility: When a daycare facility is entrusted with the safety of a child, it owes the child a legal duty to act reasonably safe. Accordingly, the party that is most commonly liable for daycare injuries is the daycare facility.
Daycare personnel: You can sue specific members of the daycare personnel for your child’s injuries. Whether an individual staff member is responsible for your child’s injuries depends on the facts, circumstances and evidence in your case.
Third parties: There are certain circumstances where a third party may ultimately be held liable for your child’s injuries. For example, if the child injures themselves on playground equipment with a defective design, the liable party may be the company that manufactured the equipment.

What Are Your Rights After A Daycare Injury?

As a parent or legal guardian, you may be entitled to sue the daycare facility for your child’s injuries. However, many daycare centers have parents sign a no-liability clause in their daycare contracts. These liability waivers give the illusion that daycare facilities cannot be sued for injuries, but this is not always the case.

Whether you can bring a suit on for your child’s injuries will depend on the facts and circumstances of your case. Generally, you have the right to bring a lawsuit against the daycare where your child sustained an injury. However, it’s important to understand that you are technically bringing a suit on your child’s behalf because they are not old enough to do so themselves.

The Next Friend Rule

The court system allows legally competent parties whose interests align with the minor’s to represent them in court. In daycare injury lawsuits, the parent or legal guardian can act as the “next friend” of the minor child in court, making it possible to sue the daycare and other liable parties for your child’s damages.

Child Injury Compensation

Personal injury compensation for children resembles other personal injury claims. For instance, monetary damages include:

Medical bills
Medical visits
Treatments
Medications
Therapy
Counseling

Furthermore, when a child is awarded damages, the court usually appoints a trust for the child. Thus, any monetary compensation the child is awarded for their injuries arising from the claim is kept for them until they turn 18, at which point they may have full access to the money. Generally, some money may also be allocated for the use of the parent or guardian in the care of the minor child.

Legal Time Limits

It’s important to quickly initiate your claim against the daycare facility, as there are legal time limits for your claim. The legal time limit, which starts from the date of the injury, varies by state. After the time limit elapses, you may be time-barred from bringing a lawsuit against the daycare or other guilty parties for your child’s injury.

Because the child is a legal minor at the time of the incident (under age 18), some states allow the child to bring the daycare injury lawsuit for two years upon turning 18 years old. Memories will fade over time, so consult with an experienced daycare injury attorney immediately after your child’s injury. Your attorney can explain your legal rights and help with gathering crucial evidence for your claim.

Read more about how a daycare injury lawsuit actually works once you decide to move forward.

Locations We Serve

Zinda Law Group represents families in daycare injury cases across several states. Nationwide, including, Texas, we cover Dallas, Houston, Austin, Fort Worth, and San Antonio. We also serve Fort Collins, Colorado, Albuquerque, New Mexico, and clients across Arizona.

Need Help? Contact Zinda Law Group Today

Zinda Law Group’s experienced daycare injury attorneys can assess the facts of your case, explain your legal options, and discuss the viability of your case. Your child’s daycare should be held accountable for their failure to keep your child safe. Our attorneys strive to help parents protect their children and build a strong case.

For a free consultation with a daycare injury attorney call (866) 921-3894. Additionally, we offer a ‘No Win, No Fee’ guarantee, which means that you won’t pay anything unless we achieve a favorable outcome for your case.

Meetings with attorneys by appointment only.