It Could Happen To You: Babysitting Blues

Marie Whitford is an exceedingly responsible young lady. She took a babysitting safety class when she was 11 and began as a Mother's Helper for the young couple across the street, the Adams. She's worked with them for3 years now, and really enjoys spending her Friday nights with their two children Abby and Charlie. At 6 and 4 they're great at playing together and Marie rarely has difficulty getting the two of them in bed before 9. Mr. and Mrs. Adam's have just had their third child, Bella, and are taking their first night out since she was born 4 months ago. Although Marie has had no experience with infants, Mr. and Mrs. Whitford always stay home when Marie babysits so Mrs. Adam's doesn't think twice to hire her for their first dinner out. They're catching an early dinner and picking up a DVD on the way home, and have never had a problem when Marie has babysat. Wanting to do a great job, Marie calls her mom while she changes the baby's diaper to make sure she's doing it right. While on the phone, she fails to notice that Abby and Charlie have slipped out of the playroom. It's not until she returns the infant to her cradle that Marie notices anything is amiss. She sees Charlie in the yard and runs outside, but by the time she makes it over the baby gate and down the stairs Abby is already climbing the tree and is on a branch that is over Marie's head. Before Marie can even scream for help, Abby has slipped and fallen. Mrs. Whitford hears the shout and calls 9-1-1 before running over. At the end of the day Abby survives, but the fall seriously damaged both of her legs and doctors are unclear how this will effect her growth and development. Although Mr. and Mrs. Adam's understand this was an accident, they're extremely upset that Marie didn't disclose she had never changed a diaper before and argue that they would have shown her how to and avoided her being distracted if they had known. In court, a Judge awards the Adams $1,000,000 for ongoing medical care for Abby. Fortunately, the Whitford's have an Umbrella Policy! Their homeowner's insurance responds for the first $500,000 and their Umbrella kicks in for the remaining settlement. Not only does the Umbrella protect Mr. and Mrs. Whitford's financial profile, it resolves the claim in a timely manner to avoid any further strife between the neighbors.