accidents in creche

viztopia

My son is 2.5 years old. About 10 months ago he fell in crèche and bruised his cheek. it has a permanent mark which is similar to a dimple. soon after I asked for a copy of the accident report and the owner got very defensive and while she didn't refuse to give it she didn't give it at the same time. about a month ago the same child fell and banged his forehead off a chair. we went to doctor and he was in two minds wether to put in stitches or glue it but in the end he glued it. the glue and plaster has now come off and there is a very noticeable scar on his forehead. he is in the crèche 3 half days a week and while the owner would see him every day she has never asked about him. the crèche overall is just ok and we only use it because the next nearest one would be a 30 minute round trip whereas this is a 2 minute walk. there is very little give in the crèche i.e. we have two older children who are off school next week so some one will be minding them and the crèche are going to charge for the youngest 3 half days whether he goes in or not. has anyone any suggestions or experience with something like this before?

dori_dormer

The creche should have insurance so I hope you are sending in all bills related to these accidents and gettign reimbursed. Anything from petrol, to you taking time off as well as the doctors bills can be claimed from their insurance.

As for flexibility. Why shouldn't you be charged for days you choose to take your kid out of the creche? They still need to pay staff and keep his place available for him. You would only not pay someone if they chose to close certain days. A childminder may be more flexible but if you contract someone for certain days, you need to pay them whether you decide to use the service or not as long as it's available.

Have you chatted to them about his accidents? Things happen with loads of toddlers in one room but if you think it was negligence you need to address it with them.

January

Accidents happen OP, and sadly it seems like you have an accident prone child. Sometimes they are just unlucky like that. As the previous poster suggested, inquire about insurance and claiming from it for medical bills.

On your second point, you should have to pay for days you decide not to send your child in. They have to hold his spot, they can't give it to another child, so of course you should have to pay.

emeldc

Unless the creche accept that they were negligent, will their insurance co really pick up the tab for the medical bills. Would they not be setting themselves up for a future claim?

celligraphy

I would ask to see the cameras ,if they have the accidents recorded I would be so weary though my sister worked I'm a creche and just some people would be very hush hush about accidents

lazygal

Did you not have to sign the incident report forms after each accident?

mordeith

lazygal wrote: »

Did you not have to sign the incident report forms after each accident?

This. At the playschool our youngest fella goes to we have to sign an incident report for some things I would consider trivial.

How Strange

Either myself or my husband always have to sign the incident report form for even the smallest incident. Once our crèche didn't fill out a report for an incident which was more serious than usual, by comparison, and I asked them the next day if they had it ready for me to review and sign.

dori_dormer

All crèches should have insurance for any accidents that happen on site. I read on a parenting fb page the other week that if you claim from the insurance it means you can't then sue? Accidents happen in all work places. Often no one is to blame, but like already said if you think there is negligence contact a solicitor.

emeldc

dori_dormer wrote: »

All crèches should have insurance for any accidents that happen on site. I read on a parenting fb page the other week that if you claim from the insurance it means you can't then sue? Accidents happen in all work places. Often no one is to blame, but like already said if you think there is negligence contact a solicitor.

Ah well, if it was on Facebook, then it must be right.

dori_dormer

emeldc wrote: »

Ah well, if it was on Facebook, then it must be right.

It was a parenting group and almost this exact question came up. A mother who works for insurance claims replied. Can't remember the exact answer but thought it was worth mentioning in case the op did want to pursue it but later found out she couldn't due to the insurance claim.

Shadylou

In my sons creche we have to sign an incident report for tiny insignificant things ( a few weeks ago he jammed his finger, there was no scratch or anything) I would be very concerned that there was not a follow up done especially if he required medical care.

I would be requesting a meeting with the owner, while its true that accidents happen they should be following up on them

emeldc

dori_dormer wrote: »

It was a parenting group and almost this exact question came up. A mother who works for insurance claims replied. Can't remember the exact answer but thought it was worth mentioning in case the op did want to pursue it but later found out she couldn't due to the insurance claim.

So let's say, child falls over, gets a stitch in forehead, crèche insurance pick up the tab but some weeks later child has other more serious (brain) issues due to the fall. But now it's too late because the insurance paid for the stitch? Really?
I doubt insurance cover these type of falls at all. Kids fall over all the time. There would be hundreds of claims per week. It's not like he fell off a table or down the stairs unaccompanied. I'm not in the insurance industry so I'll stand corrected with an informed view.

dori_dormer

I think you'd be able to further claim on the insurance, you just wouldn't be able to sue the creche?

I'm not certain but cost of creche is high, because then inurance is so high due to all the claims put in.

LegacyUser

January wrote: »

Accidents happen OP, and sadly it seems like you have an accident prone child.

You are not being serious here I take it?

January

Dr. Michael Hfuhruhurr wrote: »

You are not being serious here I take it?

Yes I am being serious. You've never met a child who is prone to falling, tripping and banging themselves off things? Really?

lazygal

January wrote: »

Yes I am being serious. You've never met a child who is prone to falling, tripping and banging themselves off things? Really?

Yes but when under the care of someone else I'd expect full disclosure of what happened. My minder always mentions why there's a scrape or bruise if they've had a fall. If I wasn't properly informed I'd be wondering what else the service was covering up. Accident report forms are a requirement.

January

lazygal wrote: »

Yes but when under the care of someone else I'd expect full disclosure of what happened. My minder always mentions why there's a scrape or bruise if they've had a fall. If I wasn't properly informed I'd be wondering what else the service was covering up. Accident report forms are a requirement.

Oh I agree there, always always make sure there's a report of what happened. If any of the kids even fall in school I usually get a phone call about it, it's usually just to inform me they've fallen, or bumped their head with another child etc etc, they are ok but just to let me know and to decide whether I want to go in to them or not.

Neyite

viztopia wrote: »

My son is 2.5 years old. About 10 months ago he fell in crèche and bruised his cheek. it has a permanent mark which is similar to a dimple. soon after I asked for a copy of the accident report and the owner got very defensive and while she didn't refuse to give it she didn't give it at the same time. about a month ago the same child fell and banged his forehead off a chair. we went to doctor and he was in two minds wether to put in stitches or glue it but in the end he glued it. the glue and plaster has now come off and there is a very noticeable scar on his forehead. he is in the crèche 3 half days a week and while the owner would see him every day she has never asked about him.

It's a fact of life that children get bumps and scrapes. I think I had permanently skinned knees until I was about 12, and I wasn't a particularly accident prone child. What IS concerning is that the crèche is not maintaining an incident report or giving you a copy. Are they telling you about all the other bumps and scrapes your child gets? It seems that nearly every other week I get told that Junior bumped X or fell off Y or got donked on the head with a toy by another child. All temporary and he's as right as rain after a cuddle and a cry. It's par for the course. But I still get told about it. So if there is an absence of feedback of the tiny bumps and scrapes then I'd worry that they are only telling you about the ones that are visibly bad. And to me, that would ring alarm bells.

wrote:

the crèche overall is just ok and we only use it because the next nearest one would be a 30 minute round trip whereas this is a 2 minute walk. there is very little give in the crèche i.e. we have two older children who are off school next week so some one will be minding them and the crèche are going to charge for the youngest 3 half days whether he goes in or not. has anyone any suggestions or experience with something like this before?

The pricing is standard to all crèches - my (excellent) crèche does this. If he is sick or if I choose not to send him in, its still a day I pay for. If they are closed, then I don't pay.

If you are unhappy with a creche, or unsure of their professionalism then think about changing, even if it means a bit more of a journey. I looked at 2 in my immediate vicinity and when I saw the one that was a little bit further away I just got a good vibe about it which I didn't with the others. So if your gut is telling you something, go with that.

Moonbeam

My 1st baby fell in creche and split her chin open,2 staff members brought her to the medical centre as I worked beside it I got there a minute later her primary carer was nearly in tears too.Her chin needed to be glued. The chef kept her lunch for her and the creche refunded the cost of the doctor. Accidents happen but it was very well managed too.