Halloween Injuries And Accidents To Watch Out For

Who knows what Halloween will look like this year? How many kids will venture out going door-to-door for tricks and treats? Will families stay home or find ways to adapt for safe trick-or-treating? One father and daughter even created a candy chute to maintain distance while still handing out candy. For anyone who does go out and about in the neighborhood this Halloween season, there are some safety precautions to take into account to make sure your kids stay safe. 

Common Injury Accident Around Halloween Celebrations

On the spookiest night of the year, the greatest risk of injury comes from the same threat that kids face year-round: car accidents. According to a report in the Washington Post, an average of 54 pedestrian children were struck and killed by an automobile on Halloween Day from 2004 to 2018. 

According to the National Safety Council (NSC), kids are more than twice as likely to be hit by a car and killed on Halloween than on any other day of the year. Safety tips include: 

• Making sure costumes don’t obstruct vision
• Carry a flashlight while trick-or-treating
• Use reflective tape to make kids more visible to cars
• Have a responsible adult accompany young children
• Agree on a specific time to return home

Other common injury accidents that occur on Halloween and the days leading up the festive night include: 

• Cuts from pumpkin carving accidents
• Trips and falls from poor lighting and tripping over costumes
• Burn injuries from lighting jack-o-lanterns
• Burn injuries from flammable costumes catching fire

The Urban Myth of Razor Blades in Candy

The worst fears of many parents during Halloween is the possibility of dangerous items intentionally placed in candy to injure or kill kids. Halloween sadism is the term for deliberately giving children contaminated candy. However, a researcher who looked into the phenomenon found the actual prevalence was incredibly low. The majority of cases of dangerous objects in candy were determined to be hoaxes or attributed to other causes. 

In one of the few actual cases of fatal candy poisoning, an 8-year-old in Texas died after eating poisoned Pixy Stix. A police investigation found the boy’s father had just taken out a life insurance policy on the child the month before Halloween. A jury convicted the man of murdering his child for financial gain and attempted murder by putting poison in candy for other children to try and cover up his crime. 

Food allergies may be a much more dangerous threat to kids with almost all candy failing to include a list of ingredients. Eggs, milk, and peanuts are the most common food allergies for kids with almost 1 in 13 children having some kind of food allergy. 

Halloween Injury Accident Claims

Halloween can be a dangerous time for children. Negligent drivers, careless neighbors, or even intentional actions can put kids at risk of injury. If your child was injured in a Halloween accident, contact an experienced personal injury attorney. To discuss your case with a member of our legal team, fill out an online case evaluation form or call (800) 529-6162 today.