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-   -   What steps should I take if my son was hit with a basket by a Walmart Store Manager ? (https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/showthread.php?t=500947)

  • Aug 23, 2010, 07:40 AM
    Foxlady25
    What steps should I take if my son was hit with a basket by a Walmart Store Manager ?
    Yesterday me and my 5 yearold son were at Walmart @ the customer service counter and one of the store managers was moving baskets and while my son was standing next to me a basket hit my son in the back of the head and cause blood loss... I had Walmart to call 911 and he is okay now but his wound is not deep but it bothers me to know that a manger would be so careless... What steps should I take next ?
  • Aug 23, 2010, 07:48 AM
    mudweiser

    Accidents happen.

    You yourself said the wound is not deep. If he were hospitalized and it was going to cost you quite a bit in medical bills then I would understand but it didn't and he's okay.
  • Aug 23, 2010, 07:56 AM
    KBC
    A store worker at the local big name box store lumber yard walked near to my wood that I was carting up to the checkout,I stopped short and my shin hit the wood edge cutting my shin.

    I asked the front end manager for something to clean it up with,perhaps a band-aid or 2, she immediately asked if I wanted to make out an incident report.. that thought hadn't even crossed my mind,I did this, accidents do happen,so what.. what am I going to do?Sue the store because I was being courteous and the employee was in a hurry(perhaps? )

    No,I cleaned up the blood running down my leg,put on 2 band-aids and went to pay for my stuff,case closed.

    So the manager might need to be more careful,perhaps you should have said something then and there.
  • Aug 23, 2010, 08:01 AM
    FoxCash

    You could contact Wal*Mart about the incident. There's a few options to contact them.

    Customer Service for Wal*Mart:
    Walmartstores.com: Feedback
    1-800-925-6278

    Wal*Mart Ethics Department:
    1-800-WM-ETHIC

    You could try either one of those to voice your opinion. At the most I could see you getting a gift card out of it all and the store talking to it's employees about being extra careful when in crowded situations.
  • Aug 23, 2010, 08:17 AM
    jmjoseph

    I think that the ambulance, and all of the fuss that I'm sure that you made over his "blood loss", probably did more damage to your son than the scratch did.
    Did the responding medical crew transport him for a CAT scan? Or did they just give him a sucker?

    If this injury is serious, then go find a lawyer, the kind with the BIG billboards.

    If not, then go enjoy your child and stop looking for an easy payday.
  • Aug 23, 2010, 08:26 AM
    excon
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Foxlady25 View Post
    one of the store managers was moving baskets and while my son was standing next to me a basket hit my son in the back of the head... What steps should I take next ?

    Hello F:

    It's impossible to tell from your description whether the manager, or the store was negligent or not. He certainly MIGHT have been, in which case you'd be entitled to damages. Or he might NOT have been, in which case, you wouldn't be.

    The only way to find out is to view the video. The only way to view the video, is to hire a lawyer.

    excon
  • Aug 23, 2010, 08:39 AM
    ScottGem

    Excon's point was what immediately came to mind when I read your post. There is no way to tell from your description whether negligence exists or not. Why would you think the manager was careless?
  • Aug 23, 2010, 12:11 PM
    ballengerb1

    Good answers and I agree we don't know if there was negligence involved. For all we know you may have accidentally contributed by standing in an unsafe place. Not suggesting that, just saying we can't tell.Most suits are to recover damages and you have not stated your damages yet.
  • Aug 23, 2010, 12:16 PM
    jmjoseph

    I wonder if the OP would have called 911 at home, if it happened there, and SHE was responsible?
  • Aug 23, 2010, 12:32 PM
    sideoutshu

    The first step I would take is not putting my son in a position where people could walk into him with a basket.

    This type of question is why I have to deal with negative stereotypes every day.
  • Aug 23, 2010, 01:56 PM
    letmetellu

    I would have had the manager apologize to your son, hoping that he would have learned that accidents happen and that every time you break a fingernail you don't sue someone.
  • Aug 23, 2010, 04:49 PM
    Fr_Chuck

    I will assume they paid for all of the medical costs so far ?
  • Aug 24, 2010, 10:21 AM
    JudyKayTee

    This is posted on the legal thread and so...

    In my experience investigating these accidents WalMart (with a smile and immediately) pays "reasonable" medical costs, definitely immediate medical costs.

    I have known WalMart to throw in a couple of dollars, some gift certificates, to make up for the inconvenience caused by an injury.

    If you hit someone in the back of the head with a basket you are negligent - unless your son was somehow moving, running, placing himself in harm's way and even then it depends on the age of the child and his awareness of the danger.

    You can only sue for damages - what are your damages? Scarring, anything like that - ?

    I understand that OP is upset and angered by the injury to her son but I'm not sure this is a case worth pursuing.

    Injuries to adults are not the same as injuries to a child. While I do agree that apparently the child's head wasn't chopped off and so maybe it's a minor injury it is a legal question and I have posted the legal issues I investigate every day.
  • Aug 24, 2010, 10:28 AM
    JudyKayTee
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by KBC View Post
    A store worker at the local big name box store lumber yard walked near to my wood that I was carting up to the checkout,I stopped short and my shin hit the wood edge cutting my shin.

    I asked the front end manager for something to clean it up with,perhaps a band-aid or 2,,she immediately asked if I wanted to make out an incident report..that thought hadn't even crossed my mind,I did this,,accidents do happen,so what..what am I going to do?Sue the store because I was being courteous and the employee was in a hurry(perhaps??)

    No,I cleaned up the blood running down my leg,put on 2 band-aids and went to pay for my stuff,case closed.

    So the manager might need to be more careful,perhaps you should have said something then and there.


    An adult walking into a cart he is pushing (stopping short for whatever reason) and having your child smacked in the head by a basket being moved by a manager are two entirely different things legally.

    In this case (an adult stopping short and, thus, injurying himself) I don't see any responsibility on the part of the store or the employee. I don't even see proximate cause to be an issue.

    In the OP's situation, I do, as explained in my post about negligence.

    In general - RickJ just brought me up short on another thread when I was the one who questioned a person's motive instead of simply giving advice, as follows: Quoting Rick J "We can not and should not question motives here. If we find that a certain type of question is asked frequently, we can give a link to it."

    I believe the same situation exists here - less about motive, more about advice.

    https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/immigr...im-501366.html

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