Child injured in a car accident in Georgia: deadlines, settlements and your rights

When a crash hurts your child, everything else stops. You're sitting in a hospital room, an adjuster is calling, and you're wondering whether waiting to see how your child heals will cost the family its rights.

Here is how Georgia law treats a child injured in a car accident: the deadlines, the parents' separate claim, car seat questions and why a judge may need to approve a settlement. This guide comes from attorney Gary D. Huggins of Huggins Accident Injury Lawyer in Perimeter Center. If your child is hurt, medical care comes first.

How long does a child have to file an injury claim in Georgia?

Most Georgia injury claims must be filed within two years (O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33). For a child, that clock generally waits. Under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-90, the two-year period for a minor's own injury claim usually does not begin until the child turns 18.

In practice, a child hurt at age 10 may have until about age 20 to file. That extra time exists to protect children, not to suggest families should wait. Our guide to the Georgia statute of limitations explains the general rules.

There are three reasons not to rely on the extra time:

• The parents' claim runs on its own schedule. The child's claim and the parents' claim are different claims.
• Government notices come fast. If a city, county or state vehicle or road was involved, written notice is due within months, not years.
• Evidence disappears. Video gets recorded over, vehicles get repaired or crushed, and witnesses move away.

Not sure which clock applies to your family? Call (240) 421-5511 and Gary will sort out the dates with you.

The parents' claim is separate from the child's

A child injured in a car accident in Georgia has a claim for his or her own losses: pain, scarring, emotional distress, and any lasting effect on school, activities or future work.

The parents usually have a separate claim for the child's medical bills while the child is a minor. That parents' claim follows different deadline rules than the child's own claim, so it should be treated as running now.

Keep a folder from day one:

• Every bill, receipt and explanation of benefits
• Notes on missed school, therapy visits and time you took off work for appointments
• Photos of injuries as they heal
• A short journal of changes you notice, such as sleep, mood or schoolwork

For crashes on or after April 21, 2025, a jury may hear what your health plan actually paid for treatment (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-1.1), so complete records matter. Our post on who pays medical bills after a crash covers health insurance, med-pay and hospital liens.

Government vehicles: notice deadlines may still apply

If a school bus, a city truck, a county vehicle or a dangerous state road played a part, the claim usually needs formal written notice before any lawsuit:

• City: within 6 months (O.C.G.A. § 36-33-5)
• County: within 12 months (O.C.G.A. § 36-11-1)
• State of Georgia: within 12 months (O.C.G.A. § 50-21-26)

MARTA and other public bodies can have special notice rules and shorter deadlines. Don't assume a child's age pauses a government notice deadline. Read more about ante litem notice for city and county claims.

Was a school bus or city vehicle involved? Call (240) 421-5511 this week so the right notice goes out on time.

Car seats, boosters and what insurers argue

Georgia requires a driver to restrain a child under 8 in a car seat or booster appropriate for the child's height and weight, in a rear seat if one is available (O.C.G.A. § 40-8-76). A child taller than 4 feet 9 inches uses a regular seat belt instead. The Governor's Office of Highway Safety summarizes the rules on its Georgia seat belt laws page.

If a child wasn't in the right seat, the other driver's insurer may raise it. Two points matter:

• The statute itself says a violation is not negligence per se. It doesn't excuse the driver who caused the crash.
• Whether a different seat would have changed the injury is a medical and engineering question, not something an adjuster decides on a phone call.

For older children and teens, SB 68 now allows seat-belt evidence in pending and future cases (O.C.G.A. § 40-8-76.1(d)), though a judge can exclude it as unfairly prejudicial. See our article on seat-belt evidence after SB 68.

Save the car seat. Don't throw it out or reuse it until it has been photographed, because it can show how the crash forces reached your child.

Watch for injuries that show up later

Children often can't describe what hurts. Head injuries are a special concern, because symptoms such as headaches, irritability, trouble sleeping or slipping grades can appear days or weeks later.

In metro Atlanta, injured children are often treated at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, including Scottish Rite on Pill Hill near Perimeter Center and the Arthur M. Blank Hospital off North Druid Hills Road, a pediatric Level I trauma center. Follow every referral and keep every appointment.

If your child's teacher or coach notices changes, write them down with dates. Our page on brain injury claims explains how a concussion is documented.

Worried about how your child is doing weeks after the wreck? Call (240) 421-5511 and talk it through with Gary.

Settling a child's claim: court approval and conservators

A child can't sign a binding release, so Georgia sets rules for settling a minor's claim (O.C.G.A. § 29-3-3):

• Gross settlement of $25,000 or less: a parent, as natural guardian, may settle without court approval.
• Gross settlement over $25,000: the settlement must be approved by the probate court, or by the court where a lawsuit is pending.
• Net amount to the child over $25,000: a conservator must be appointed to handle the money for the child.

These steps protect your child. They also mean a settlement takes some planning, sometimes including a structured settlement or a court-approved trust.

Don't let an insurer rush a child's settlement before doctors know how the injury will heal. Scars, growth-plate fractures and head injuries can take months to show their full effect.

Who pays when the driver has little insurance?

Georgia is an at-fault state, and the at-fault driver's liability insurer pays first. The minimum coverage is only $25,000 per person.

Your own uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM) coverage can protect relatives who live in your household, including children, and added-on UM pays on top of the other driver's limits. Our guide to added-on vs. reduced-by UM explains the difference.

Georgia's modified comparative negligence rule (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33) still applies, so an insurer may try to place blame on a teen driver or a child who crossed the street. Fault is divided by evidence, not by the adjuster's say-so. If a crash takes a child's life, the parents may bring a claim for the full value of that life; see our wrongful death page.

How Gary helps families after a child is hurt

Gary Huggins has practiced law since 2005, and he is an adoptive parent himself. He meets families at the office, at home, by phone or video, or at a hospital bedside, and he speaks Spanish. He tracks both the child's claim and the parents' claim, sends preservation letters for video and vehicle data, and checks every policy in your household.

If you hire the firm, there is no attorney's fee unless we recover compensation for you.

Talk to an Atlanta car accident lawyer today

You can reach Gary at 1050 Crown Pointe Parkway, Suite 500, Atlanta, GA 30338 in Perimeter Center, a few minutes from Scottish Rite and the I-285 and GA-400 interchange. Read more about our Atlanta car accident practice, or call (240) 421-5511 at any hour for a free consultation about your child's crash.