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Liability
Children playing in cul de sac street damage vehicles with balls – are they
liable or breaking laws? Also are you liable for injury if the child comes unto
your property to get their ball without you permission and get hurt?
Asked on April 3, 2018 under Personal Injury, Washington
Answers:
S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
The parents are liable for the damage caused by their children to cars. The parents are liable for negligence which is the failure to exercise due care (that degree of care that a reasonable parent would have exercised under the same or similar circumstances to prevent foreseeable harm). The parents are negligent for not supervising their kids.
Your damages (monetary compensation you are seeking in a lawsuit for negligence against the parents) would be the cost of repairs to all of your cars that were damaged by the children.
You can sue the parents in small claims court. Upon prevailing in the case, you can also recover court costs which include the court filing fee and process server fee.
You are liable as the owner of the property if a child comes on your property and is injured. Even if the kid is a trespasser, you the property owner are liable. Your liability would include the kid's medical bills and compensation for pain and suffering which is an amount in addition to the medical bills.
Compensation for the medical bills is straight reimbursement. The medical reports document the injury and are used to determine compensation for pain and suffering which as discussed above is an amount in addition to the medical bills.
If someone is injured on your property, refer the matter to your homeowner's insurance carrier which will handle it for you.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.