Back to School Safety Tips: Preventing Personal Injuries on Campus

Personal injuries can be devastating and have lasting effects on your physical, mental, and financial well-being. You may only think of personal injuries occurring in vehicle-related accidents, but they can happen anywhere at any time, including school. As we’re a month into the new school year, it’s important to discuss some back-to-school safety tips, and how to prevent personal injuries from happening on campus.

Below are several different aspects of safety that are vital for you and your children to be aware of, so that it can be implemented into their day-to-day lives at school to prevent a personal injury.

Tips For Preventing Personal Injuries:

Pedestrian Safety

Pedestrian safety is perhaps the most prominent type of safety as pedestrians are the most vulnerable road users, lacking the safety that a vehicle can provide. In fact, in 2022, 824 pedestrians were killed in Florida.

It’s imperative that your children use crosswalks or any other designated walkways correctly, in addition to staying alert whenever they’re walking to and from their school. If your children have cell phones, you might also want to encourage them to keep their attention and eyes on the space around them so that if anything were to happen, they are prepared to react accordingly.

School Bus Safety

If your children travel by school bus to and from campus, then safety when they’re boarding and exiting is crucial as well. According to data collected by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2021, 108 people were killed in school bus-related crashes. Statistics like these should serve as a reminder of how important school bus safety is. While some situations are out of your children’s control, they should always practice safety by staying seated, buckling up, listening to the directions of their school bus driver, being aware, and crossing the road safely when they enter and exit the bus.

Playground Safety

Depending on your children’s age, they may still be active on a playground when they’re at school. While playgrounds are intended for fun physical activity, they can also pose serious risks to your children’s safety. While they should have adult supervision already, there are safety measures you and your children can take as well to prevent or prepare for a possible personal injury, including wearing proper attire, playing with equipment that is intended for their age and size, being mindful of others, and more.

Backpack Safety

You may not have considered something simple like a backpack as something that could cause a personal injury for your children, but it can create strains or back injuries that can develop or worsen with time. Wearing a backpack properly is an important step in preventing injury, which means using both straps correctly. Using one strap has been found to curve the spine, causing lower and upper back pain, and possibly functional scoliosis, which teen girls are especially susceptible to. The Mayo Clinic recommends tightening the straps of your children’s backpacks so that they sit high on their back so it doesn’t sway when they walk.

Food Allergy Awareness

Food allergy is another important safety measure to be aware of. If your children are in elementary school, teachers tend to be extremely involved in snack time and lunches and are aware of the student’s allergies. However, as they get older, the responsibility falls on them. It’s essential to instill awareness into them when it comes to allergies so that they don’t put themselves or another student in harm’s way.

What To Do If Your Child Is Injured At School

No matter what kind of injury occurs at or around school, it can be traumatizing for your child to go through. If they are seriously injured at school, on a crosswalk, or school bus and it wasn’t their fault, and you wish to take legal action, these are the steps you should take.

Seek immediate medical attention and have injuries assessed by a professional. Make sure you keep any diagnoses and bills organized as these can be used for evidence.
Take photos and gather any witness statements if appropriate.
Communicate with the school to gather any additional details of importance and get copies of any incident reports that were filed.
Consult with an experienced personal injury attorney. They can evaluate the incident and help you determine if you have a strong case for a personal injury claim. Additionally, they can help you gather supporting evidence and offer you strategic legal advice for the next steps.
Organize any evidence that you have.
Gain a strong understanding of your legal rights and options so that you can make an informed decision on what to do next.
Allow your attorney to guide you through negotiation or litigation processes so that you can reach a fair and favorable outcome on behalf of your child.
Focus on your child’s recovery. Their well-being is the most important thing after all.

Remember that every personal injury case is dependent upon individual circumstances, so consulting with a personal injury lawyer is the best way to ensure that your child’s rights are protected, and it also gives you the greatest advantage at recovering maximum compensation.

How The Florida Law Group Can Help You

The Florida Law Group is one of the state’s oldest and most reputable personal injury firms around. We’ve recovered over $1 billion on behalf of our clients since we opened our doors in 1984, so we know what it takes to get successful results. Our personal injury lawyers have over 100 years of combined experience navigating Florida’s personal injury laws and we want to help you and your child win a settlement if they’ve been injured at school. There is a statute of limitations in Florida for the allotted amount of time that you have to file a personal injury claim, so it’s important that you don’t put this off. Call The Florida Law Group today to schedule a free consultation with one of our personal injury lawyers. We will explain your legal rights and options, answer your questions, and guide you through the necessary steps to take in order to get the compensation your child deserves.