From car accidents to eye injuries, the risks of several injuries increase during the Halloween season. It’s a time for fun but not a time to let your guard down or for others to be careless. Fortunately, personal injury lawyers can assist you if a negligent individual caused your injury.
Halloween is the fourth-most common holiday for pediatric injuries needing an ER visit in the U.S. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) estimates that 4,500 Americans sustained Halloween-related injuries annually. Many of these injuries are entirely preventable if you know the injury risks. Sometimes prevention isn’t just up to you but those around you as well. If they are negligent and fail to reasonably prevent an injury, with the help of a seasoned Huntsville personal injury lawyer, you could hold them accountable.
Hand injuries involving pumpkins were responsible for 41 percent of injuries according to CPSC 2017 stats. Orthopedic surgeons recommend using a knife designed explicitly for pumpkin carving as they require more force than traditional sharp knives to cause injuries. While pumpkin carving knives still cause injuries, they are much less severe than other knife wounds.
It seems that all holidays cause an increase in car accident injuries, and Halloween is no exception. Children are twice as likely to be fatally injured by a vehicle on Halloween than on any other day of the year. To decrease this risk, experts recommend using glowsticks, a flashlight, or even embellishing costumes with reflective tape.
Falls are a common injury handled by Huntsville personal injury attorneys; however, Halloween increases the risk of falls for several reasons. Adults and children alike are more likely to be dressed in costumes that are too big and drag on the ground or that incorporate masks, making it more difficult for them to see where they are going. Trick or treating outdoors when it is dark adds to the dangers as well as outdoor Halloween decorations.
You may not have seen this one coming, just like adults who are hit in the eye with flying eggs. Thanks to the old tradition of egg-throwing, severe eye injuries are common around Halloween. Some even experience lasting visual disruptions or severe permanent loss of vision. A severe injury from such an intentional act warrants a consultation with a Huntsville personal injury lawyer.
Eye injuries can also be associated with applying Halloween makeup as it can cause corneal abrasions and vision problems.
Halloween is meant to be a scary but fun experience, but when injuries creep into the equation, the fun is gone. You can protect yourself and your children knowing these injury risks. If anyone in your family sustains a Halloween injury due to the negligence of someone else, you should speak with a lawyer to learn more about your legal rights. Schedule your consultation with an experienced Huntsville personal injury attorney by calling Cloud, Ryan & Rouse at 256-801-1000, or using our online contact form.
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