Child Severely Injured on Disney Resort Property - what would you do?

[Anthony1971]

Disney has a claims department. You can call and you will be given the contact info. The claims department is in fact lawyers and they are all about if a claim is valid or not so expect no other conversation. Start there with submitting your bills and if there is anything else you are looking for.

 

[DaviVascaino]

I am a MD, so I understand a bit about health insurance policies

- your insurance will be be billed as out of network, most likely tier 3 because this was an out of state hospital. So you will be hit with the worst out of pocket/deductible possible for your plan. it does not matter to them if that was an "accident" or not, that won't affect the way it is billed, so be prepared.

- The bill will likely be significant, because your child required surgery, multiple specialists (surgeon, plastic surgeon, anesthesiologist, ER doctor, etc), facility fee (operating room, etc).

- I personally WOULD NOT sue Disney. however, I would definitely contact them and explain to them how much you are going to spend on this (probably thousands in terms of deductible) and the least they could do is to pay for EVERYTHING. If they say no, then you threaten litigation. I highly doubt they would not pay for your expenses. They might even offer another stay for free.

- DO NOT wait for the hospital bills to contact Disney. sometimes it takes weeks/months for the insurance to process everything, you are wasting precious time. once the bill is sent, you have 60-90 days to make a payment, and they rarely put on hold even if you are trying to figure it out with Disney. be proactive, don't waste time.

Good luck and I am glad the kid is fine!

 

[Rogue1677x]

Easy for them - they don't have to do anything, pay out anything for legal fees, put themselves through more trauma and difficulties, live with any additional consequence or basically put any effort into anything other than harassing you. This is your family and your decision. I agree with PP who said ignore the chirping family member.

You haven't failed your kid. You got medical care and they have been taken care of. Any actions you decide to take or not take will not change that. Your first reaction was to take care of your child. That's not failure.

You definitely did not fail your kid. My medical incident as a kid that involved a hook and a body part was a swing and a broken hook that went through my pinkie finger. My mom's solution, take a box of bandages, go back outside and let me watch my soap operas. Oh and the hook was rusty.

 

[CAPSLOCK]

I would absolutely converse with Disney about whatever out of pocket expenses you have. I would hope they don't have a major issue paying back direct out of pocket expenses. There is no cost to you to reach out, file whatever forms, send whatever records, etc. That doesn't require legal representation. If you're asking for your direct medical expenses and not the unreasonable payouts that some people feel entitled to, you should have a good chance at them covering the costs without you shelling out anything.

 

[Bree]

I would at least expect Disney to cover the medical bills. Personally, the only reason why I would sue is if there was permanent damage that results in a loss of quality of life or future medical care needed, etc. Personal injury lawyers can take up to 30% of your proceeds here in FL. The rate is negotiable, but of course they won’t tell you that

 

[Dave006]

I personally would want them to pay whatever insurance did not cover, especially since out of state. I would also delete this thread because you really don't need Disney to be reading this.

@MrsBooch

No in many if not all cases if you have Health Insurance, your Insurance company will want the full bill paid by Disney. The incident occurred at one of Disney's properties.

This would include the Ambulance fee, all hospital charges including the charges for other providers of service involved in your child's care. This would include the items mention in @DaviVascaino post above:

- The bill will likely be significant, because your child required surgery, multiple specialists (surgeon, plastic surgeon, anesthesiologist, ER doctor, etc), facility fee (operating room, etc).

Note: you may receive multiple bills beyond the Hospital bill. Many hospitals use multiple specialists that are not part of the Hospital Group.

Special Note: If you want to go the Personal Injury litigation route. Please select a Law Firm that is able to practice in Florida. The location where the accident occurred so any suit would need to be filed in Florida.

Dave

 

[ucf_knight]

If this happened at any other place without big pockets where someone has an accident and gets hurt the thought of lawsuit wouldn’t even come up. Glad your kid is ok and you definitely did the right thing getting him the care he needed.

 

[Kooks and Bay Bay]

In my opinion it was then and there that you needed to take action if you wanted some kind of compensation. Although it sounds more like who ever is whispering in your ear is the only reason you're thinking about it now.

If anything I think I'd send and email and see what type of response you get.
Disney is pretty good about "keeping the guests happy" if its something they can do.
I wouldn't expect a whole lot though. Perhaps they would go as far as some tickets or a discounted room rate etc. They will not admit fault or give you money for medical bills etc. That would be considered if you actually want to sue them.

I've had a couple of not so magical experiences. One time I was given a shirt on the spot as a cast member spilled something on me.
Another time I emailed after having an unpleasant experience at an event and was given a partial refund.

 

[Shughart]

When your health insurance company receives the hospital bill, they will likely send you a questionnaire asking if the incident was on your own property. Fill it out, send it back and they will take care of the rest.

Yep, this. If you get it, fill it out truthfully and they will decide if they want to contact Disney/their insurance for compensation for the incident.

 

[brockash]

No - I haven’t experienced anything like that and I really don’t want to do it at all but this family member is making me feel pretty stupid for not having that be my first reaction - so I’m second guessing myself. Am I being too risk averse?Should I be more aggressive?

I’m just so worried about failing my kid.

I do think you should out to the resort (what resort was it) and Disney and ask if they will cover the medical expenses (even if it's the form of a refund for part of your trip etc.) If they say no, then you can start thinking about your next step and if you want to deal with it.

 

[sipnride]

Non-attorney with experience helping family achieve pre-litigation settlements.

IF you happen to know a PI attorney who was willing to send a demand letter for some nominal fee you should do that. Otherwise, you can draft a letter yourself. List the day it happened and the reference to the incident report, and then just write, in your own words, how this impacted you and your child, what this trip meant to you and your family, and the anguish of seeing your child endure this. Emphasize what traveling to a Disney destination represents: a safe and secure family vacation, and the comfort of knowing Disney will take care of things like this. Share what it was like to have such a muted response from Disney. Finally, let them know that you'd prefer to avoid involving an attorney, and to have an amicable resolution, but that you have others in your family urging litigation, and that it will be hard to avoid going down that road if Disney can't provide a settlement that addresses the emotional distress this caused, along with any outstanding or potential medical bills your family will have to pay out of pocket,

Write your letter, wait for their response, then decide what's best for you and your family. No matter what comes of it, it's important for Disney to know that they have a responsibility to be there for their guests when something like this happens.

 

[cruising spud]

I can only imagine that Disney has some of the best lawyers in the world. Maybe Bill Gates has the time and money to sue Disney, but I don't believe the average person does. If this was me, I would contact my insurance company first, to see what they had to say about recovering the costs of the hospital visit.

 

[elvispursley]

I’m really surprised that the hospital’s ER admissions did t have a form asking if this was accident related. I broke my foot when shopping at a major retailer and when having an item of clothing up on the rack, a very heavy magnetic sale sign dropped on my foot. I didn’t realize it was broken until I went to the ER the next day. The hospital offered me the form to fill out but because I didn’t notify the manager at the store, I didn’t want the hassle of reporting it. I would definitely contact the insurance company now.

 

[TexIrish]

My family is currently driving home from spring break at a DVC resort - non WDW property. My child was walking on the pool deck (multiple witnesses) toward the pool slide which has a small gate to shut when closed. The latch is a large hook, and he fell onto it - it is at chest level & he hooked his under arm, & was basically cut open. We were taken to the hospital via ambulance and he had to have emergency surgery.
Honestly this was the most traumatic thing I’ve ever had to go through, he is fine as far as there is no nerve or muscle damage, it was all soft tissue and we were very lucky to have had a plastic surgeon on staff to do the surgery. He was able to do other things there and we tried to create as many other fun memories as possible given this happened on the second day of a 9 day trip.

The staff were very worried and kind of course- they did take an incident report - and then later on we noticed that they also changed the type of latch on the gate from hook to loop.

I’ve got a family member in my ear about litigation - but I don’t know what to do or even if that is something we should do. Should I reach out to Disney? To DVC? Should I expect to hear from them? I don’t know - I tried searching forums here to see if anyone was in a similar situation but couldn’t find anything. What would you do?

First of all, sorry this happened to you. Secondly, there is no way you are failing your child BUT I would strongly consider consulting with a personal injury lawyer. I am not sure where you live, but ideally, you would consult with a lawyer licensed in Florida (assuming the incident occurred there) or even back home, one who would be able to point you in the right direction. Here is the deal, if your son was injured, which I have no doubt he was, and he was injured through no fault of his own, why should the at fault/negligent party get the benefit of not having to pay the true value of the claim? Assuming the at fault party is liable, if you accept an offer from them to pay "just the medical bills" or "what insurance didn't pay," I'm telling you that is a big win for them. I would gather your medical bills, records, take photos of the injuries, and consult with a lawyer. As a personal injury lawyer myself, I get calls all the time from people who were injured, got some money from the at fault party, and then want to know if they can get more because they are still having problems...too late. That person would have had to sign a release to get that money and the release basically says "we are paying you $x, and in exchange you are done and will not pursue this any longer." All because they didn't want to "make this a big deal." Your son had surgery-that has value. He had pain-that has value. If he has a scar from the surgery- that has value. Obviously, the medical bills as well. Again, just my 2 cents, but at least talk to a lawyer. They will be able to negotiate and present the claim to the at fault party's insurance carrier, and if a lawsuit is necessary, discuss that step with you. This isn't legal advice, just something to consider. Again, sorry this happened and good luck.

 

[Disneychick75]

No input on any possible further action but I am terribly sorry that your son was injured.

 

[mmouse50]

I’m am so sorry that you had to deal with this during a vacation - it is bad enough when are home but while on a vacation would be a stress factor. But I am wondering why everyone is stating to sue / not to sue Disney? You stated it was a DVC but also it was off property. With exception of Vero Beach, Aulani and in the Carolinas I am just wondering where are Disney Vacation Clubs that are off property (I consider all of Disneyworld property including Saratoga Springs). Other than that I don’t have much to offer except if it happened at a neighbors house or the public pool would you be thinking the same?

 

[MrsBooch]

I’m am so sorry that you had to deal with this during a vacation - it is bad enough when are home but while on a vacation would be a stress factor. But I am wondering why everyone is stating to sue / not to sue Disney? You stated it was a DVC but also it was off property. With exception of Vero Beach, Aulani and in the Carolinas I am just wondering where are Disney Vacation Clubs that are off property (I consider all of Disneyworld property including Saratoga Springs). Other than that I don’t have much to offer except if it happened at a neighbors house or the public pool would you be thinking the same?

It happened on a DVC resort property but not in Florida, that’s all I meant by off Walt Disney Resort property - and thank you

 

[MrsBooch]

I’m sorry but I need to yell again… IGNORE THE FAMILY MEMBER. YOU ARE THE PARENT. THEY ARE A BUSYBODY WITH NOTHING TO LOSE.

Tell them you’ve heard their opinion, you will make your own decision in your own time and you do not want to hear another word about it from them. I don’t care if it’s your own mother- you need to silence their nonsense. They aren’t raising this kid, they don’t know what is best. This isn’t any of their business and they’re screwing with your head and it might end up hurting your kid.

It is a good thing your first thought when your kid got hurt wasn’t “who can I sue?!” because a good chunk of people lack the empathy even for their own children and just see this sort of thing as an opportunity for a paycheck that will solve their life’s problems. This is not a viewpoint that should be listened to much less elevated to the level of good advice.

Wait until you have the bills and then make the choice on if you will be taking another step in the matter. You are NOT failing your kid by not running to a lawyer as soon as you got home

Thank you SO much for this - we had a 13 hour drive home yesterday and I wasn't able to reply until today - but this really helped me get some perspective. We are just going to take it day by day at this point - he was able to stretch his arm without pain - he didn't even realize he did it until after a super big yawn and we all cheered

 

[MrsBooch]

I just want to say overall thank you so much to everyone - this has really thrown me off and I felt like I needed to solicit some opinions of people who aren't directly involved or impacted - and your words, thoughts and prayers have helped more than you can know

 

[Karebear]

Sent you a PM