Houston Daycare Fall Injury Lawyer

Houston Personal Injury Lawyers. Power Up.

Free Consultation

Houston Daycare Fall Injury Lawyer

Every parent in Houston trusts a daycare to keep their child safe. When a child suffers a fall injury at a facility near the Texas Medical Center, Memorial Park, or anywhere across Harris County, that trust is broken. Falls are not just bumps and bruises. They can cause fractured bones, traumatic head injuries, and long-term developmental damage. If your child was hurt in a fall at a Houston daycare, you have legal rights under Texas law, and Gustin Law Firm is here to help you use them. Our principal office is in Houston, Texas, and attorney Taly Gustin is responsible for this content.

Table of Contents

How Common Are Fall Injuries at Houston Daycares?

Falls are the number one cause of nonfatal injuries to children in the United States. The CDC states that around 8,000 children are treated in emergency rooms for fall-related injuries daily across the country. At the daycare level, these numbers are alarming. Research shows that falls are the leading cause of injuries in childcare settings, often resulting in lacerations, contusions, and abrasions. The head and face are the most frequently injured body parts in these incidents.

Young children are especially at risk. Children between the ages of 1 and 4 have the highest rate of nonfatal falls. That age group makes up a large portion of children enrolled in Houston daycares, from facilities in the Heights to those near Katy Freeway. Texas data backs this up. As of August 31, 2023, there were 8,281 licensed daycare centers in Texas with a total capacity of 1,007,791 children. With that many children in care, even a small rate of fall injuries translates to thousands of hurt kids every year.

What makes these numbers especially troubling is that most fall injuries at daycares are preventable. A lack of supervision is often the root cause of these preventable daycare injuries. When a caregiver steps away, gets distracted, or is stretched too thin across too many children, a toddler can fall from a changing table, tumble off playground equipment, or trip over a hazard that should have been removed. These are not accidents. They are failures. As a personal injury lawyer who handles cases for Houston families, Gustin Law Firm sees these situations regularly, and they are almost always tied to negligence by the facility or its staff.

What Texas Law Says About Daycare Fall Injuries

Texas law holds daycare facilities to a clear standard of care. Under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 74A and the premises liability framework, a daycare operates as an occupier of land with a duty to keep its premises reasonably safe for children. Daycares invite children onto their property, which means children are legal invitees. That status carries the highest duty of care under Texas premises liability law. The facility must inspect for hazards, repair dangerous conditions, and warn of known dangers.

Texas Health and Human Services enforces minimum standards for licensed daycare centers under Chapter 746 of Title 40 of the Texas Administrative Code. Platforms at daycare facilities must have barriers to prevent children from falling through or becoming stuck, and for children pre-K and younger, platforms 20 inches or higher from the ground require those barriers. All stairs and climbing equipment must have handrails, and climbing equipment, inflatables, and swings must have unitary surfacing materials underneath to cushion falls. When a daycare violates these standards and a child gets hurt, that violation is powerful evidence of negligence in a civil claim.

Texas also recognizes a special duty to protect children from dangerous artificial conditions on property. Under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 75.007(c), a property owner can be liable for injuries to a child caused by a highly dangerous artificial condition when the owner knew or should have known children would be present and failed to exercise reasonable care to eliminate the danger. For daycares, where children are always present, this standard applies with full force. A broken step, an unpadded fall zone, or a slick floor near a play area can all create liability. If your child was hurt at a Houston daycare injury lawyer situation, Gustin Law Firm can evaluate whether these legal standards were violated.

Common Causes of Daycare Fall Injuries in Houston

Fall injuries at Houston daycares happen in predictable ways. Knowing the most common causes helps parents understand whether negligence played a role in their child’s injury. Falls at daycares commonly result in serious injuries when daycare workers step away while changing diapers for infants and toddlers, leaving them vulnerable to rolling off tall changing tables; when young children are left to play on tall playground equipment that is inappropriate for their age without a teacher closely watching, including monkey bars and high ladders leading to slides; and when little ones wiggle while unbuckled or unrestrained in a highchair and fall during mealtime.

Beyond those scenarios, unsafe physical conditions inside the facility are a major factor. Wet floors near bathrooms or snack areas, uneven surfaces on outdoor playgrounds, broken equipment, and cluttered walkways all create fall hazards. A CDC study found that among childcare centers surveyed, 29% had inappropriate surface materials under play equipment, 56% had insufficient depth of those materials, and 21% had missing or broken equipment. Those are staggering numbers. Houston families deserve better from the facilities they trust.

Staff-to-child ratio violations also contribute directly to fall injuries. Texas requires daycares to adhere to state-mandated child-to-staff ratios to ensure adequate supervision and care, with stricter guidelines for younger age groups. When a facility near Westheimer Road or Beltway 8 packs too many children into a classroom with too few caregivers, falls become almost inevitable. A child on a slide, a toddler near stairs, or an infant on a changing table all need direct adult attention. Without it, injuries happen. These ratio violations can also support a daycare negligence claim in Harris County court.

What to Do After Your Child Suffers a Fall at a Houston Daycare

The steps you take right after your child’s fall injury matter a great deal for their health and for any future legal claim. First, get your child medical attention immediately. Texas Children’s Hospital, Memorial Hermann, and other Houston-area hospitals can assess injuries that may not be visible, including head trauma and internal fractures. Do not wait to see if the pain goes away. Children often cannot describe what hurts, and delayed treatment can make injuries worse.

Second, document everything. Ask the daycare for a written incident report the same day. Take photos of the area where your child fell, the equipment involved, and any visible injuries. Write down the names of the staff members who were present. If there are other parents or witnesses, get their contact information. The daycare is required under Texas HHS rules to report serious injuries to DFPS, so ask whether that report was filed.

Third, preserve evidence. Do not allow the daycare to repair or remove the hazard that caused the fall before it is photographed and documented. That evidence, whether it is a broken handrail, a slick floor, or an unpadded fall zone, is central to proving your case. Child care facilities must report incidents of abuse, neglect, or serious injuries to DFPS immediately. If the facility failed to do that, it is another violation that strengthens your claim. Consulting a daycare injury attorney early in this process helps ensure that evidence is preserved and your rights are protected before deadlines pass.

What Compensation Can Houston Parents Recover?

When a daycare’s negligence causes a child to suffer a fall injury, Texas law allows the family to pursue compensation for the full range of damages. Medical expenses are the most immediate, including emergency room visits, imaging, surgery, physical therapy, and any ongoing treatment your child needs. If your child suffered a head injury, broken bone, or spinal injury, long-term care costs can be substantial. These future medical expenses are recoverable as part of your claim.

Beyond medical costs, Texas law recognizes pain and suffering damages for the child. Young children experience real physical pain, fear, and emotional distress from serious falls, even if they cannot put it into words. Courts in Harris County recognize this and allow juries to award compensation for a child’s physical pain and mental anguish. Parents may also recover their own losses, including lost wages if they had to miss work to care for an injured child.

In the most tragic cases, where a fall injury results in a child’s death, Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 71.002 allows surviving family members to bring a wrongful death action. Under that statute, liability exists when death is caused by a person’s wrongful act, neglect, carelessness, or unskillfulness. A daycare that failed to supervise a child, maintain safe premises, or follow state minimum standards can be held liable under this provision. Gustin Law Firm has helped Houston families recover more than $50 million in total recoveries across personal injury cases. Attorney fees and litigation expenses are deducted from any gross recovery, and we work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay no attorney fees unless we recover for you. Court costs and litigation expenses may still apply depending on the outcome of your case.

FAQs About Houston Daycare Fall Injury Lawyer

How long do I have to file a daycare fall injury claim in Texas?

Texas law generally gives you two years from the date of the injury to file a personal injury lawsuit. However, for children, the statute of limitations may be tolled, meaning paused, until the child turns 18 in some circumstances. That does not mean you should wait. Evidence disappears, witnesses forget details, and DFPS inspection records have retention limits. Contacting Gustin Law Firm as soon as possible after your child’s fall injury gives your case the strongest foundation.

Can I sue a Houston daycare if my child fell on a playground?

Yes. If the fall was caused by unsafe equipment, inadequate supervision, age-inappropriate play structures, or missing fall-cushioning materials, you may have a valid negligence or premises liability claim against the daycare. Texas HHS minimum standards require specific safety measures for playground equipment, including barriers on elevated platforms and cushioning surfaces under climbing structures. A violation of those standards, combined with your child’s injury, is strong grounds for a lawsuit in Harris County.

What if the daycare claims the fall was just an accident?

Daycares often call injuries accidents to avoid liability. There is a real difference between a true accident and an injury caused by negligence. If a caregiver was not watching, if the equipment was broken, if the floor was wet without a warning sign, or if the staff-to-child ratio was violated, the fall was not simply an accident. It was the result of someone failing to do their job. Gustin Law Firm investigates these claims thoroughly to determine what really happened and who is responsible.

Does it matter if the daycare is licensed by the state of Texas?

Yes, it matters significantly. Licensed daycare centers in Texas are subject to DFPS and Texas HHS minimum standards under Chapter 746 of Title 40 of the Texas Administrative Code. A violation of those standards is evidence of negligence. You can check a facility’s inspection history and any cited violations through the Texas HHS childcare search tool. If the daycare that hurt your child had prior violations, that history is relevant to your case and can show a pattern of unsafe conditions.

What makes Gustin Law Firm the right choice for my Houston daycare fall injury case?

Gustin Law Firm is a Houston-based personal injury firm that handles daycare injury cases for families across Harris County and the surrounding areas. We have recovered more than $50 million in total recoveries for injured clients, with attorney fees and litigation expenses deducted from gross amounts recovered. We take daycare fall injury cases on a contingency basis, so there are no upfront fees to get started. We know Harris County courts, we know Texas premises liability law, and we know how to hold negligent daycares accountable. Call us today at (713) 491-4792 for a free consultation.

More Resources About Specific Types of Daycare Accidents that Can Cause Injuries

"He does what he says he will do."

Mr. Gustin is a highly effective, efficient, conscientious, and tough attorney. I can not say enough good things about him. He does what he says he will do. He was able to move the case forward quickly when the initial attorneys hit a snag. He made a difference. I do not think the case would have been won without him.

— Orville McNeil