Written By: Rebecca Sorgiovanni
Reviewed By: Kevin Wong, Director and Personal Injury Lawyer
Last Reviewed: 26 August 2026
If your child was hurt because someone else was careless, you can claim compensation for them in Western Australia. You bring the claim on their behalf, because a child under 18 can’t run a legal case alone. One detail trips up more parents than any other, and it is worth understanding early. The deadline is not simply “until your child turns 21.” For a child injured before age 15, WA law gives you 6 years from the date of the injury (Limitation Act 2005 (WA), s 30). For younger children, that window can close years earlier than most people expect. This guide to child injury compensation claims in WA covers who can claim, the real deadlines, what you can recover, and what happens to the money.
A child injury compensation claim is a personal injury claim made for someone under 18 who was hurt by another person’s negligence in Western Australia. A parent or guardian runs it for them as their litigation guardian. Any money recovered belongs to the child, and a court checks the settlement is fair before it is paid.
Kids get hurt a lot. Across Australia, about 88,766 children and teenagers were admitted to hospital for injuries in a single year, and falls were the top cause, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Most of those are accidents no one could sue over. But when the cause is someone else’s carelessness, a driver, a school, a doctor, a property owner, your child may have a right to compensation.
Time limits in 2026: does my child really have until 21?
Not always, and this is the point people most often get wrong. WA sets the deadline by how old your child was when they were hurt, not by one age for everyone.
Two rules in the Limitation Act 2005 (WA) do the work. If your child was under 15 when they were injured, you generally have 6 years from the date of the injury to start court action (s 30). If your child was 15, 16 or 17 when they were injured, the deadline is their 21st birthday (s 31).
So a 6-year-old hurt today has until around age 12, not 21. A 16-year-old has until 21. Same injury, very different clocks. There are limited exceptions. A court can extend time in some cases, and the clock can pause while a child has no guardian. You can’t count on either.
| Child’s age when injured | Deadline to start court action | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 6 years from the date of injury | Limitation Act 2005 (WA), s 30 |
| 15, 16 or 17 | Before the 21st birthday | Limitation Act 2005 (WA), s 31 |
Car crashes add an earlier step on top of these deadlines, covered below. When a deadline is this easy to misjudge, early advice is the cheapest insurance you can get.
Who brings the claim for your child
You do, as the child’s litigation guardian (sometimes called a next friend in WA). A person under 18 can’t be a party to a court case on their own, so a parent or guardian steps in to run it for them.
A litigation guardian instructs the lawyers, gathers evidence, makes the day-to-day calls, and decides whether to accept a settlement, always for the child’s benefit rather than the family’s. It is a real duty, not a signature. You act in the child’s interest even when that is not the easy choice for you.
The child injuries you can claim for
Any injury caused by someone else’s negligence can support a claim. The ones we see most for children in WA fall into a few groups.
Car crashes are the big one, whether your child was a passenger, a pedestrian or on a bike. The rules for a car accident involving a minor differ from an adult’s, so it pays to know them early. Then there are public place and playground injuries, like a fall from unsafe school equipment or a hazard at a shopping centre, which run as a public liability claim. Medical negligence during treatment or at birth is another, and those are among the most serious. Dog attacks, theme park and ride injuries, childcare accidents and injuries from faulty products round out the list.
Each type runs under different rules, which is why one early conversation saves a lot of guesswork.
How does a child’s car accident claim work in WA?
Your child’s motor injury claim runs through the WA motor injury scheme, managed by the Insurance Commission of Western Australia (ICWA). WA is fault-based, so you generally need to show another driver was careless. If your child was a passenger, a pedestrian or a cyclist hit by an at-fault driver, fault is usually clear.
Two things move fast, so don’t sit on them. First, report the crash. You lodge an online crash report and a Notice of Intention to Make a Claim with ICWA, and for an injured child the parent or guardian lodges it. Soul Legal’s guidance is to get this in within about 6 months of the crash. A late notice isn’t automatically fatal, but it hands the insurer a reason to fight.
Second, get every injury recorded by a doctor, even the minor ones. Some injuries in children surface days later, and an injury that isn’t in the medical records is easy to argue away.
What if my child was hurt at school or childcare?
Schools, childcare centres and the people who run public spaces owe your child a duty to keep them reasonably safe. When they fail and a child is hurt, that is a public liability claim under the negligence rules in the Civil Liability Act 2002 (WA).
These cases turn on supervision and safe premises. Broken play equipment, a known hazard left in place, too few staff watching too many kids. You claim against the institution or its insurer, not the individual teacher or carer. Watch the clock here too, because public liability time limits have their own notice steps.
What a child can claim compensation for
A child claims under the same broad heads as an adult, but the future weighs far heavier because a child has a whole life ahead of them.
| What a child can claim | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Medical and treatment costs | Past and future hospital, surgery, rehab, therapy and medication |
| Pain and suffering | The injury’s effect on the child’s life (general damages) |
| Future care and assistance | Help with daily living, often the largest part of a serious claim |
| Loss of future earning capacity | Reduced ability to work and earn as an adult |
| Out-of-pocket expenses | Travel, aids, equipment and carer costs |
Two WA-specific catches. For motor vehicle claims, WA applies a threshold to pain and suffering, so a minor injury may recover little or nothing under that head. And future losses for a child need expert evidence, because you are estimating a life that has not happened yet.
Working out a child’s future loss
Future loss is the hardest part of a child’s claim and often the biggest. You are putting a number on a life not yet lived: the career they might have had, the care they will need for decades. That takes expert evidence from occupational therapists, medical specialists and sometimes economists. Courts look at things like the child’s school performance before the injury, their interests and their family background to estimate lost earning capacity.
Because these figures rest on projections, they are worth getting right the first time. A rushed settlement that guesses low can leave a child short by the time they are an adult and the money is spent.
Do all child settlements need court approval?
Yes. Every settlement for a child has to be approved by a court before it is final. A judge checks the amount is fair for the injuries and the child’s future, and can reject a deal that is too low and send everyone back to negotiate.
This protects your child from being short-changed, including by a rushed decision made under financial pressure. It also adds time, so build that into your expectations.
Where the compensation money goes
The money is your child’s, and it is protected until they grow up. A court can order the funds be held and managed, often until the child turns 18, rather than handed to a parent as a lump sum.
In WA, the Public Trustee or another approved manager may look after a larger sum, investing it and releasing money for the child’s genuine needs along the way. The point is simple. The compensation is there for the child, for the long haul.
What if my child was catastrophically injured?
WA has a no-fault safety net for the worst injuries. The Catastrophic Injuries Support Scheme covers people catastrophically hurt in a motor vehicle accident from 1 July 2016, no matter who was at fault.
It applies to five injury types: spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, multiple amputations, severe burns and permanent traumatic blindness. For a child with one of these injuries, the scheme funds lifetime treatment, care and support. That matters most when no other driver was at fault, because the ordinary fault-based claim might not get off the ground.
What if a dog or a faulty product hurt my child?
Dog attacks and dangerous products are two more common causes. If a dog attacks your child, the owner is usually responsible, and WA’s Dog Act 1976 makes a dog’s owner liable for injuries it causes. If a faulty product hurt your child, a toy, a piece of furniture or nursery equipment, you may have a claim against the maker or supplier under Australian Consumer Law. Keep the product, the packaging and any receipt, because that is your evidence.
The cost of a child injury compensation claim in WA
At Soul Legal, children’s injury claims run on No Win No Fee, so there are no legal fees unless the claim succeeds. On a win, we pursue party-and-party costs from the insurer, which covers the bulk of the legal costs. The first consultation is free, and if you decide not to proceed, there is no charge. No lawyer can promise a result, though, because every claim turns on its own facts, injuries and evidence.
What to do now if your child was injured
Move on the things that fade. Get your child seen by a doctor and make sure every injury is written down. Photograph the scene, the hazard and the injuries. Get the names and numbers of anyone who saw what happened. Report it to whoever was responsible, the driver’s insurer through ICWA, the school, the centre or the property owner. Keep every receipt and medical record. Then get advice before you talk settlement with any insurer.
Why early advice matters for a child’s claim
Children’s claims are harder than adult ones. The deadlines split by age, the settlement needs a court’s approval, and the future losses need expert evidence built years before they are paid. Get those wrong and a child loses money they will need decades from now. A claim is only worth bringing where someone else’s negligence caused the harm, and honest advice sometimes means being told you do not have one.
Soul Legal’s directors have run WA injury claims for a long time. Rebecca Sorgiovanni has practised personal injury law since 1997. Kevin Wong has done so since 1991, including catastrophic, lifelong injury cases. If your child is in hospital or can’t travel, we come to you at home or in hospital. You deal with a qualified lawyer, not a file number. For the wider picture, start with our personal injury claims in Perth overview.
Frequently asked questions
How long do I have to make a child injury compensation claim in WA?
It depends on your child’s age when they were hurt. Under the Limitation Act 2005 (WA), a child injured before age 15 generally has 6 years from the injury (s 30), while a child injured at 15, 16 or 17 has until their 21st birthday (s 31). Car crash claims also need early notice to ICWA, so get advice quickly.
Can I claim compensation on behalf of my child?
Yes. A parent or guardian acts as the child’s litigation guardian and runs the claim for them. You instruct the lawyers, make the decisions and accept or reject settlement offers, always in the child’s best interests. The compensation belongs to the child.
Does a child injury settlement have to be approved by a court in WA?
Yes. Every settlement involving a child must be approved by a court before it is finalised. The court checks the amount fairly reflects the injuries and the child’s future needs, and it can refuse a settlement that is too low.
What happens to the compensation money until my child turns 18?
A court can order the money be held and managed for the child, often until they turn 18. In WA the Public Trustee or another approved manager may invest a larger sum and release funds for the child’s needs in the meantime.
Can I start my child’s claim before they turn 18?
Yes, and often you should. Starting early preserves evidence and witness memories and avoids any risk with notice deadlines. The settlement still needs court approval no matter when the claim resolves.
What if my child was injured at school?
A school or childcare centre that fails to supervise properly or keep its premises safe can be liable under WA public liability law. You would claim against the institution or its insurer. These cases turn on what the school knew and whether it acted reasonably.
How much is a child injury compensation claim worth in WA?
It depends on the injury, its long-term effect and the evidence. A child injury compensation claim can cover medical costs, pain and suffering, future care and lost future earning capacity. Serious cases are often driven by future care costs, which need expert evidence to calculate.
Talk to a WA injury lawyer about your child’s claim
If your child was injured and you think someone else was at fault, get advice before a deadline or an insurer decides it for you. Soul Legal offers a free first consultation and No Win No Fee on child injury compensation claims across WA. Call (08) 6558 1786 to talk it through.
This article is general information about child injury compensation claims under Western Australian law and is not legal advice. For advice on your child’s situation, speak with a lawyer.
Rebecca Sorgiovanni is the Director of Soul Legal, a trusted Perth-based injury compensation lawyer with over two decades of experience representing injured clients in complex litigation and tribunals across Western Australia.
