Occasionally, we handle cases where the injury involves someone other than the person sitting in the driver’s seat or walking into our office.  Sometimes a pregnant client is injured in a crash or a beloved pet is hurt because of someone else’s carelessness.  So what does Missouri law allow in those situations?

Let’s start with pregnancy.  If you are injured in a crash or fall while pregnant, the first priority is medical care. We strongly recommend that you contact your OB/GYN or go to the hospital and follow whatever testing or monitoring your doctor recommends.  Even if you feel okay, it is important to make sure both mother and baby are healthy.  It is also important to document what happened, what symptoms you experienced, and what medical providers did to evaluate the pregnancy.

Thankfully, in many cases, the baby is completely healthy.  In that situation, the mother may still have her own injury claim for the crash, including the physical injuries, medical bills, lost wages, and the fear and stress that come with being hurt while pregnant.

If there is a documented injury to the baby, the claim becomes more serious and more complicated.  Medical records, fetal monitoring, ultrasounds, specialist opinions, and causation evidence become very important.  The question is not just whether a crash happened but whether the crash caused injury to the pregnancy or to the child.  In the tragic event that the baby is lost, Missouri law may allow a wrongful death claim.  Missouri recognizes that unborn children have protectable interests in life, health, and well-being and Missouri courts have allowed wrongful death claims involving unborn children following an injury to the mother.  These are extremely sensitive cases and they need to be evaluated carefully with both medical and legal evidence.

What if a pet is injured?  We covered keeping pets safe while traveling more extensively in our September 2023 newsletter.  From an injury case standpoint, Missouri generally treats animals as personal property (legally referred to as chattel).  That does not match how most of us feel about our pets.  To most families, a dog or cat is not “property” in any meaningful emotional sense; rather, they are part of the family.

Unfortunately, owner recourse is limited to economic damages. That may include the fair market value of the pet, the cost to replace a similar animal, and reasonable veterinary bills or related expenses.  What Missouri law generally does not allow is a separate pain and suffering claim for the owner based solely on the emotional loss of the pet.  That can feel unfair, especially when the loss is very real but it is important to understand the limits of the law before deciding how to pursue the claim.  The practical advice is the same in both situations: document everything, get medical/veterinary care, save bills, records, photographs, discharge instructions and any communication with the insurance company.

When an injury involves a pregnancy or a family pet, the legal issues can be more complicated than they first appear.  The best first step is to make sure everyone is safe, get the proper care and then talk with an attorney about what the law allows.