Knocked front teeth out at school

[ChrissieKeller61]

So I’ll try and keep this brief.
Child was playing on a raised platform, bit like decking in the absolute pouring rain. There was actually a sever weather warning that day.
So he falls. I get a phone call to pick him up and am handed his front teeth shorn off. Adult teeth.
We’ve had NHS treatment and they’ve capped them with composite filling. But he’s in on going pain. And this solution is temporary. Long term he’ll need veneers maybe even implants.
This going to be an ongoing cost for the rest of his life.
A few friends have suggested we see a solicitor. But who am I claiming against the local authority?

[Alexkate2468]

@DontMakeMeShushYou

[Pud2]

No actual knowledge of the sitution is required to sort this one out. An accident has happened so Mumsnet screams "Shocking" "Sue" "Report" "I'd be wanting to know..



Your child had an unfortunate accident. It happens. If you sue the school it will cost them and this money will have to come out of an already stretched budget, even if they have insurance. Every penny in a school budget is already allocated. There isn’t some magical pot of money that can be used for this and so it will take away from resources for the school, both human and physical.

[ClappyFlappy]

On mumsnet even if someone deliberately sawed your leg off you’d be expected just to put up with it. Total nonsense and most people don’t have a clue.

Ultimately I suppose it depends on who is responsible for the school who you would pursue for damages. Up here it would be the local authority but it may be different elsewhere - I know England have academies, free schools etc.

It’s been a long time since I did anything in this area of law but IIRC there are different/statutory duties of care in matters involving public authorities so it may be worth looking into. At the end of the day your child has sustained permanent damage to adult teeth, it’s pretty serious, it’s not like a broken nail. There may be liability on their part, there may not be, but I think it’s worth looking into.

As for the snide comment about instructing a solicitor I’d like to know what is actually wrong with the OP not having the knowledge or expertise to pursue the matter herself. Presumably she’s not a lawyer. Or do you never need to consult a suitably qualified professional for assistance? Do you do your own dentistry as well?

[seltaeb]

Check if your household insurance has legal cover that will cover you for a claim of this type, that way you will get legal input. Dental treatment is very expensive so you should definitely claim. There must have been some force to break adult front teeth.

[PanicAndRun]

You talk to/sue the school, and they can claim on their insurance.


I work in a school myself, and while it's very rare we keep the kids in, on wet days certain pieces of equipment are out of bounds . Mainly the wooden ones that get very slippery.

If they have put cones around it now, they themselves agree it is dangerous and not fir for purpose when wet.

Yes it was an accident, but it was a preventable one .

[yellowallpaper]

For negligence you need to prove 3 things.
Was he owed a duty of care by the school staff - yes
Did he come to harm - yes
Was the incident foreseeable, could have been avoided, etc.

So you would have to look at the weather conditions. Was it unreasonable to allow children out in the weather conditions and did it have an influence on the incident. That's the important bit. Was he blown off the deck, was the wet surface slippery?

The condition of the deck. Was it poorly maintained, slippery because it needed cleaning, unreasonably high, again did it have an influence on the incident

We're there any safety warnings around the equipment.

If the decking was slimy and not cleaned making it slippery when wet, then you might have a case, but if it was well maintained and clean, then it was just an accident.

[HunterHearstHelmsley]

I knocked my adult teeth out when I was a child. Up until last year, they didn't cost me anything. I had had the same crowns that I had fitted when I was under 18.

Last year, I decided to have them replaced. It cost me around 2k. It doesn't have to be an ongoing cost.

[HerLadySheep]

It's absolutely the school's fault! Wet decking is notoriously slippery and is not a suitable surface for a school.
Your child faces a lifetime of expensive dental treatment to replace the teeth, a crown needs replacing periodically and it's not cheap.
Seek legal advice, this is definitely something you should claim for on your child's behalf, this is why schools and businesses have insurance.
Any money your son receives will be approved by the Court and held in trust until he's 18, it can be used with permission in the meantime for dental treatment.

[ChrissieKeller61]

@Hunter
How long are you expecting those crowns to last ? You maybe in for a surprise.
£2000 is expensive over the course of a lifetime. I’m sure those prices will also inflate.

[ChrissieKeller61]

@HerLadySheep
Exactly, no money is going to benefit me nor the child it’s just going to compensate for money that will need to be spent hence. Nobody’s going to be up on the deal but I don’t see why they should be out of pocket due to the lack of supervision or common sense applied that day.

[HerLadySheep]

And you will need to use a solicitor, is quite a specialised area, you need a dental report setting out the likely future costs of dental treatment for your child's lifetime, and you need a Barristers opinion to put before the Court so the award can be approved.
You wouldn't try and undertake your own surgery, why attempt to undertake a complicated legal process unless you know how to?

[ChrissieKeller61]

@HerLadySheep I was trying to save the authority money, but you’re quite right, why should that be my concern

[HunterHearstHelmsley]

ChrissieKeller61

I had the first set for 19 years. They didn't actually need to be changed. I chose to change them for aesthetic reasons. I literally have about a quarter of an inch of dead tooth left (both front teeth).

The 2k included some composite fillings on the two teeth either side also.

[yellowallpaper]

@ChrissieKeller61 I think you're getting very carried away with this because of the impact the incident had on your son. What does he say actually happened? His testimony has a direct bearing on any case you undertake.

[Pud2]

Definitely getting carried away - I would come off Mumsnet and take time to think clearly and rationally. Perhaps your first port of call is a calm meeting with the school.

[SuperFurryDoggy]

How horrible, your poor boy, and poor you too. DD had a nasty injury a few years back, it hit me harder than I expected and for longer than expected. Be kind to yourself.

It’s really hard for strangers over the internet to tell whether suing is, on balance, the correct decision. However, whether you sue or not you may want to make an official complaint to the school to be sure that nothing like this can happen again. Assuming you have t already of course. This is what we did with my DD. In her case the school took it very seriously and changes were made. We didn’t pursue damages, although to be fair it is not a comparable accident as lasting damage is fairly minor.

Regarding suing, if you decide to go ahead with it I would be inclined to ask to meet the headteacher and calmly explain your reasons before doing so.

[TopBitchoftheWitches]

I have had my crowns in for 30 years after massively breaking my adult front teeth as a child.
You are being ridiculous.

[Katrinawaves]

I think this is an occupiers liability claim not a negligence claim and the local authority should be ensured to cover it.

Occupiers liability is where there is something inherently unsafe about premises which causes or contributes to an accident. Like an unfenced pond in your garden which a burglar falls into in the dark and drowns.

High decking above a concrete surface which gets slippery when wet would seem to me to fall into this category. Talk to the head or Chair of Governors at the school about making a claim against insurance. It doesn’t have to be framed as a complaint or be an aggressive conversation- this is pretty run of the mill stuff for them, just not for you and and your poor son!

[ChrissieKeller61]

How did you break your teeth @ TopBitchoftheWitches ?

[TopBitchoftheWitches]

I've tried to find it on Google maps but it isn't there anymore. It was a concrete road sign. I was playing on it and fell and broke my adult two upper front teeth.
It was raised from the ground and made of concrete and pebbles.

[ChrissieKeller61]

So basically you were playing on something you weren’t meant to be ?
Do you not understand how that’s different from school yard equipment failing and as a result my child being hurt ?

[TopBitchoftheWitches]

I was pointing out accidents happen and that my crowns have been in place for years.

[ChrissieKeller61]

Accidents do indeed happen when you are doing something you’re not meant to, you have to suck it up. In our case it’s different.
Glad your crowns are doing their job but modern dentistry is very different and even the top of the range crowns aren’t expected to last more than 15 years. But completely aside of that why should he or I have to incur the expense or pain when this was completely avoidable by now allowing children to play on the equipment when it’s wet, as is now the case.

[ChrissieKeller61]

Not entering into any further debate, this isn’t AIBU. Thank you to those who’ve provided information especially the information requested

[TopBitchoftheWitches]

Is your son not an NHS patient?