Child injured at school or childcare: who is liable?

If your child is injured at school, during PE or at childcare, your first concern is how they are doing and what happened. After that, questions may arise about medical costs, additional care and responsibility. The school or childcare provider is not automatically liable for every accident. Compensation may, however, be due if a duty of care was breached and the injury resulted from that breach.

Written by Onur Arslan, attorney at Arslan Advocaten. Registered in the specialisation register of the Netherlands Bar for employment law and personal injury. Last updated: 17 September 2026.

The assessment depends on factors such as the child’s age, the activity, the foreseeable danger and the level of supervision. Sometimes another party is involved, such as the operator of a piece of play equipment or the parents of another child. Below you can read which information you can request and how to prepare a possible personal injury claim with care.

In brief

• A school or childcare provider is not automatically liable if your child is injured. Usually the question is whether there was a failure in supervision, instruction or safety, but not always: for defective play equipment, an unsafe staircase or faulty PE equipment, strict liability applies, which means that fault does not have to be proven.
• What does count: was the supervision appropriate to the age and the activity, was the equipment safe, and did staff act in accordance with the organisation’s own protocol?
• Always ask in writing for the incident report, the names of the supervising staff present and the supervision or safety policy.
• If another child caused the injury, that child’s parents may be liable; the age of the child is decisive.
• Additional safeguards apply to settling the claim on behalf of your child; see personal injury involving minors.

An accident is not always a failure

Children move, play and try out new things. Not every risk can be ruled out. A school or childcare provider is, however, expected to take appropriate safety measures. What is appropriate depends on the circumstances: toddlers need different supervision from older pupils carrying out a familiar activity.

The legal question is therefore a concrete one. Was the danger foreseeable? Were the instructions clear? Was the equipment suitable? Could reasonable supervision have prevented the accident? The mere observation that a teacher was not standing next to the child is not enough to establish liability.

Conversely, being told that accidents simply happen is not a complete response either. Where there are indications of an unsafe situation, it must be examined which measures had been taken and whether they were sufficient. A factual reconstruction matters more than hasty conclusions about who is to blame.

Which party should you hold liable

A school site, school board, childcare organisation and external activity provider are not always the same legal entity. Ask who was responsible for the activity concerned and to which organisation the incident was reported. On a school trip several parties may be involved, for example a transport company or the operator of an activity.

You do not always need to work out in full legal detail who is ultimately liable before asking for information. Send a clear notification to the organisation involved and ask for the details of the responsible legal entity and of any insurer. Keep a written record of the answers.

The existence of liability insurance does not prove that liability has been accepted. A collective accident insurance policy may also provide different cover, sometimes regardless of fault. Ask, therefore, which insurance is meant and which terms and conditions apply. An insurance payout and full compensation for the damage actually suffered are two different things.

Accidents during PE lessons

In PE, relevant factors include the suitability of the exercise, the structure of the lesson, the explanation given, physical assistance and supervision. A jump or climbing task that is appropriate for one age group may be too difficult for another. Experience, particular limitations and the layout of the room can also be relevant.

Ask which exercise was being performed and which instructions were given beforehand. Were mats in place, was assistance needed and who was supervising? Write down your child’s account as factually as possible, without putting words in their mouth. Other pupils or adults who were present may have important information.

Not every failed landing means that the PE teacher fell short. Liability may, however, arise if a foreseeable risk was not sufficiently limited. An independent assessment looks at all the circumstances of the lesson and at the link between a possible failure and the injury.

Play equipment and the layout of the grounds

Broken play equipment, an unsuitable surface or a dangerous layout may raise a different liability issue from inadequate supervision. Relevant matters include management, maintenance, inspections and previous reports. Who is legally responsible depends on the situation and the applicable rules.

Take photographs of the equipment and its surroundings if possible. Record not only the damaged part, but also the location, fall height and surface, to the extent these are visible. Ask whether the equipment was closed off or repaired after the incident and whether inspection records are available.

The fact that equipment has passed an inspection does not automatically rule out liability. What also matters is its condition and use at the time of the accident. Conversely, a later repair does not in itself prove that the equipment was legally defective beforehand. Evidence and context must be assessed together.

Supervision at childcare and out-of-school care

When caring for young children, their dependence and limited ability to assess risks are important circumstances. The organisation must adapt its activities and supervision accordingly. Compliance with quality rules may be relevant, but a civil damages claim also requires an investigation into the specific event and the causal link.

Ask who was present, where the child was and how quickly staff responded to the incident. Was a dangerous room accessible, or could a child reach an unsuitable object unnoticed? Were particular details about your child known in advance? Distinguish between established facts and suspicions.

A complaint or report to a supervisory authority may serve its own purpose, such as an investigation into quality. That process is not the same as a civil claim for damages. One does not automatically replace the other. Keep the correspondence from both processes well organised and monitor any legal deadlines separately.

Who is liable if another child caused the injury?

The age of the child who caused the damage determines whom you can hold liable. This overview follows Article 6:169 of the Dutch Civil Code and Article 6:164 of the Dutch Civil Code.

Age of the child	Are the parents liable?	Is the child personally liable?	What must be shown
Under 14	Yes: strict liability (Article 6:169(1)). No fault on the part of the parents is required	No. Article 6:164 BW rules out attribution below the age of fourteen	That the conduct would have been attributed as a wrongful act if the child’s age had not prevented this
14 or 15	Yes, unless the parents cannot be blamed for failing to prevent the conduct (Article 6:169(2))	Yes, personally as well, under Article 6:162 BW. Parent and child can be held liable side by side	A wrongful act by the child; the parents can exonerate themselves
16 or 17	No, the special parental liability no longer applies	Yes, only the child personally (Article 6:162 BW)	A wrongful act and attributability to the child
All ages	Separately, the school or childcare provider may be liable for inadequate supervision (Article 6:162 BW) or for an error by a member of staff (Article 6:170 BW). That is a separate route alongside the liability of the other family		That appropriate supervision could have prevented the incident

If another child causes the injury

With a push, collision or other conduct by a child, the age and circumstances can make a legal difference. Dutch liability law contains special rules for children and their parents or guardians. A child under fourteen is treated differently for their own wrongful act than an older minor.

For children under fourteen, parents or guardians may be liable for conduct that can be regarded as an act. A different regime applies to fourteen- and fifteen-year-olds, involving, among other things, the question of whether the parents can be blamed for not having prevented the conduct. From the age of sixteen, that specific parental liability no longer exists on the same basis.

This does not mean that the parents always pay as soon as their child is involved. First, the conduct and the applicable conditions must be assessed. The circumstances of play can also be decisive. In addition, it can be examined separately whether the school or childcare provider exercised appropriate supervision; several possible legal bases must be carefully distinguished.

Which information should you request in writing

A calm and targeted request for information helps to reconstruct the incident. You do not need to draw any legal conclusion at this stage; the facts come first. Ask for:

• The accident or incident registration form: with the date, time, location and a factual description of what happened.
• Names and positions of the supervising staff present: who was supervising, and how many children.
• The supervision and safety policy: and the protocol that applied to this activity.
• The instructions given beforehand: verbal or written, and whether they were appropriate to the child’s age.
• Maintenance records of the equipment or materials: inspection log, inspection report and previous reports or complaints.
• Statements from adult witnesses: about what they saw themselves, not what conclusion they draw.
• A request to preserve camera footage: state the place, date and time window as precisely as possible. A request for preservation is not the same as a right to a copy; without such a request, footage will be deleted under the normal retention policy.
• The liability insurer and the policy number: so that the notification reaches the right party.

Not every internal document has to be handed over to you in full: the privacy of other children may play a role. That does not mean the organisation cannot explain how the incident occurred. If a request is refused, ask for specific reasons and keep a dated copy of your own request.

Medical records and the consequences for your child

Have the injury properly assessed by a doctor and keep relevant information about treatment and recovery. Think of a broken wrist, dental damage, a head injury or scarring. Each injury can have its own consequences. The legal claim must reflect the medical situation, not a general assumption that children always make a full recovery.

Note the consequences for school attendance, sleep, physical activity and daily care. Is extra support needed, or is your child temporarily unable to take part in sport? Describe the change compared with the situation before the accident. A short, factual overview is often more useful than an extensive diary recording every event.

If symptoms persist, consultation with the treating practitioners is important. The school can also provide information about changes in functioning, but it does not make a medical diagnosis. Keep those roles separate. Combining medical information with concrete observations can, however, make the consequences more visible.

Which damage can you claim for your child

Where there is liability, the necessary and reasonable costs caused by the accident can be examined. Think of healthcare costs not reimbursed elsewhere, travel expenses and aids. Additional care or support may also be relevant. Keep invoices, insurance statements and an overview of the extra help provided.

Compensation for pain and suffering (smartengeld) relates to pain, limitations and other non-material consequences for the child. It is different from the costs incurred by the parents. Make it clear in the file who is suffering which damage and on which legal basis compensation is being sought. Parents do not automatically have their own claim for pain and suffering whenever their child is injured.

In the case of serious or long-term injury, future damage may play a role. Think of delays in education, a permanent need for care or consequences for future employment. Such items require careful substantiation appropriate to the child’s age. It is not responsible to assume, without investigation, that a particular career or lifelong incapacity is a given.

Additional care by parents and missed working days

After the accident a parent may take leave for treatment or care. Not every missed working hour is automatically reimbursed at the parent’s own wage. The assessment depends on the type of costs or care, the necessity and the applicable legal basis. Make sure a distinction is drawn between support costs, care and loss of income.

Record which additional tasks are needed, how long they take and why your child cannot carry them out independently. Also make clear which care would normally have been needed anyway given the child’s age. With a young child a lot of help may be usual; the claim concerns the additional need caused by the injury.

Where professional care or a public service is used, any overlap must be assessed. The same help may not be counted twice under different heads of damage. An overview by task and period helps to show which costs are genuinely still borne by the family.

Fictional example of an accident during PE

A pupil falls during an exercise and breaks an arm. The parents request information on how the lesson was run, the instructions and the supervision available. The injury in itself does not yet say whether the school is liable. This example is fictional and contains no judgement about any real school.

If the investigation shows that a necessary safety measure was missing and that this caused the accident, a claim can be built up. The parents gather treatment records, additional travel expenses and information about help at home. For compensation for pain and suffering, the child’s pain, recovery period and limitations are described.

If, on the other hand, it turns out that the exercise was appropriate and carefully supervised, there may be no liability. An accident insurance policy may still provide cover under its terms. The example shows why both the safety question and the insurance question must be examined, without treating them as the same.

A settlement on behalf of a minor

Personal injury compensation for a child must be managed carefully. A settlement agreement may be subject to rules on representation and on approval by the subdistrict court judge (kantonrechter). Have it assessed in advance which steps are required. A parent’s signature alone is not sufficient in every situation.

An account with a BEM clause can be used to protect funds belonging to the minor. Such an account, however, says nothing about whether the settlement amount is adequate in substance. The damage must first be fully mapped out, including reasonable expectations about the future.

Do not delay gathering information because your child is still young. Evidence can disappear and legal deadlines differ from claim to claim. The special protection of minors is no reason to leave a file untouched for years. A timely assessment can safeguard rights and evidence.

Preparing the meeting with the school in practical terms

A meeting with the school or childcare provider often has two aims: understanding what happened and making arrangements for a safe return. Keep those aims clearly separate from the legal question of damages. A child may need appropriate support while it is still being investigated whether the organisation is liable.

Send a short list of factual questions in advance. Who was present, which activity was being carried out and what first aid was given? Ask which information has been recorded in writing and whether relevant documents are being retained. Avoid accusations that already draw a conclusion before it is clear how the incident occurred.

After the meeting, write a brief summary yourself and give the organisation the opportunity to correct any factual inaccuracies. Also record arrangements about PE, transport, medication or extra supervision, insofar as these are genuinely needed and have been agreed with the appropriate healthcare providers. This keeps it clear what is temporary and when the situation will be reviewed.

Involve your child in a way that suits their age and resilience. Let your child tell the story in their own words and avoid repeatedly asking leading questions. Differences between recollections do not necessarily indicate unwillingness. Note who saw something personally and who heard the information from someone else.

A school complaint and a damages claim may involve different procedures and aims. An internal acknowledgement that communication could have been better does not in itself amount to an acceptance of liability for the injury. Conversely, a careful conversation can help to secure evidence and practical support in good time. Keep the correspondence from both processes well organised.

Which statutory rules determine who is liable

In an accident at school or childcare, several legal bases may apply at the same time:

• Article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code the duty of care of the school or childcare provider itself: did it act as could be expected of a careful organisation, having regard to age, activity and foreseeable risk?
• Article 6:170 of the Dutch Civil Code the organisation is liable for errors by its employees, such as a teacher, PE teacher or childcare worker, if the risk of that error was increased by the task assigned and the organisation had authority over the employee.
• Article 6:169 of the Dutch Civil Code if another child caused the damage, age determines whom you hold liable. Under fourteen: the parents or guardian are liable (paragraph 1), provided that the conduct could have been attributed to the child as a wrongful act had the child’s age not prevented this. The child is then not personally liable: Article 6:164 of the Dutch Civil Code rules out attribution below the age of fourteen. Fourteen or fifteen: the parents are liable unless they cannot be blamed for failing to prevent the conduct (paragraph 2). Please note: from the age of fourteen, the child may also personally be liable under Article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code; with a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old, parent and child can therefore be held liable side by side. Sixteen or older: the special parental liability lapses and only the child personally is assessed.
• Article 6:174 of the Dutch Civil Code defective play equipment, an unsafe staircase or a poorly maintained playground falls under liability for buildings and structures; where they are used in the course of a business, that liability shifts to the user (Article 6:181 of the Dutch Civil Code).
• Article 6:173 of the Dutch Civil Code for defective movable property, such as faulty PE equipment.
• Article 6:107 of the Dutch Civil Code costs that you as a parent incur for your child and that your child could have claimed personally, such as travel expenses to treatment.

The statutory texts have been checked on wetten.overheid.nl. Which party you hold liable depends on who was legally responsible for the activity; the school board, the site and an external provider are often different legal entities.

Frequently asked questions about school and childcare

Is the school liable if my child is injured during school hours?

Not automatically. It must be examined whether the school breached a relevant duty of care and whether this caused the injury. The activity, age, instructions and supervision are important circumstances. The fact that it happened during school hours is not in itself a sufficient legal basis.

What if another child pushed my child?

The age of the other child, the conduct and the circumstances of play are relevant. Sometimes parents or guardians may be liable; sometimes the supervision must also be examined. There is no general rule that one of those parties always pays.

Does the school insurance cover all personal injury?

That depends on the policy. Liability insurance generally requires a basis for liability. Accident insurance may provide a different, capped payout. Ask which insurance is meant and have the terms and conditions assessed.

Can I recover my lost salary as a parent?

Not automatically. Extra care and support costs are treated differently in law from your full loss of wages. Record the necessity, the tasks and the time involved, and have it assessed which damage qualifies for compensation.

Can I complain and claim compensation at the same time?

Yes, but these are separate processes with their own aims and rules. A complaint does not automatically lead to compensation and does not automatically protect all civil deadlines. Keep both processes well organised and have the relationship between them assessed.

Which documents can I request as a parent?

Ask in writing for the incident registration form, the names and positions of the supervising staff present, the supervision and safety policy, the maintenance log of the equipment and any statements. State that you need this information to assess how the incident occurred. Keep your request and the response.

My child was injured on a school trip. Whom should I hold liable?

That depends on who ran the activity. In addition to the school board, a transport company, an amusement park or an external activity provider may bear their own responsibility. Report the incident to the school and to the organisation involved, and ask both for their account of how it occurred.

Should I wait until my child turns eighteen?

No, and waiting is not sensible either. Do, however, distinguish between two claims. The claim of your child personally only becomes time-barred five years after the day following his or her eighteenth birthday, if your child was a minor when the damage and the liable party became known (Article 3:310(5) of the Dutch Civil Code), so there is some leeway there. Your own claim as a parent, for example for travel expenses, your insurance excess and missed working days, does not have that deferred start and simply becomes time-barred five years after you yourself became aware. You should therefore hold the other party liable now. Moreover, evidence (incident reports, camera footage, witnesses) disappears much sooner than a limitation period expires. Additional care is required for the final settlement on behalf of a minor, and a payout is usually placed in a blocked BEM account until the child turns eighteen.

Discuss the accident with Arslan Advocaten

Arslan Advocaten can go through the circumstances of the accident, the potentially responsible parties and your child’s damage with you. Bring the incident report, medical information and correspondence from the school or childcare provider. This makes it possible to examine in a targeted way which information is missing and which approach is appropriate.

Read more about personal injury or contact us for an assessment.

Related articles

• Dental damage caused by an accident
• Limitation periods in personal injury claims and how to interrupt them
• Personal injury involving minors
• Holding someone liable for personal injury
• Liability: when is someone liable
• Personal injury in public spaces
• Compensation for pain and suffering: what are you entitled to

Sources and further information

• Arslan on personal injury involving minors
• The Dutch judiciary on personal injury
• The Dutch Personal Injury Council on its guidelines

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