Children are innately curious, often questioning how things work or why things are the way they are. As a parent, juggling the desire to keep them safe and fostering their development by letting them explore the world can be incredibly difficult. However, these matters can grow even more complicated when your child wanders off and is injured by an attractive nuisance on another person’s property. It’s critical to understand your rights in these matters, as explored in the following blog. You’ll also learn the importance of discussing your circumstances with a Tom Green Coutny, Texas personal injury lawyer.
What Is an Attractive Nuisance?
First and foremost, it’s critical to understand that property owners owe different individuals on their property different levels of care. Essentially, for invitees on the property, meaning those there for business purposes, the property owner must take measures to ensure the property is safe, warn of potential hazards, and take steps to remedy the hazard. For licensees, meaning social guests, property owners are only responsible for informing them of hazards that are not overt. Finally, property owners owe no duty of care to trespassers or those on the property without permission. As such, any trespasser injured due to unsafe conditions on the property has no legal grounds to file a claim. However, do you know what happens if that tresspasser is a child and sustains an injury?
Texas, like most states, has laws regarding attractive nuisance. These are artificial conditions that are appealing to children but that are inherently dangerous in nature. For example, a pool, discharged machinery, or trampolines can all be dangerous to children who do not know better. As such, property owners are required to take reasonable steps to reduce the risk of harm to children who may trespass on the property to interact with an attractive nuisance. Often, this can be something as simple as putting up fencing or locking away machinery.
Can I Seek Compensation if My Child Is Injured?
In the event your child is injured due to an attractive nuisance, you can generally hold the property owner liable for their failure to keep their premises safe.
It’s important to understand that the first thing you should do if your child is injured is to seek immediate medical care. This is crucial to ensure they can receive treatment for the wounds they’ve sustained. Additionally, it helps show that you sought immediate medical care, which can help in the event you wish to pursue a claim. Next, you should try to take photos of the property where your child was injured. This can help showcase the lack of security and safety measures in place.
Finally, you should connect with an experienced personal injury attorney to discuss your legal options. It can be difficult to recover compensation in these matters, as you’ll need to show that your child is too young to understand the inherent risks with the fixture on the property they were interacting with. As such, working with an attorney can help you recover the compensation you are entitled to.
At the Mathis Law Firm, PLLC, we understand how difficult these circumstances can be. That is why our dedicated legal team will do everything possible to help you recover the justice you and your child are entitled to when they are injured by the negligence of another person. Contact us today to learn how we can fight for you.
