Received an Invoice from the school

Post Reply New Topic

Our son was enrolled in a special school for children with autism and other behavioral health issues. He broke a door in the school during an outburst and we were just sent a bill for nearly $900 to have it replaced. Is this normal? Or legal?

He has since been enrolled in cyber school because we cannot find any environment that suits his needs.

Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you.

its disputable who's responsable, but normally you would be insured by civil liability insurance.

A lot of schools operate on a shoe string, so it doesn't surprise me they would try to bill. I do think its legal, in US anyway, but there could be ways to fight if you cannot pay it. I'm not aware that such bills are a common practice because it seems to me they could trigger counter claims - for inadequate education, for example (in the US the law requires that schools provide an adequate education based on the unique needs of the child; if you feel forced to home school it would seem they haven't met that obligation).

I would probably start with an information seeking conversation, where you try to understand their policy without revealing your own strategy. Fighting already over burdened schools isn't something I generally believe in, BUT sometimes we have to in order to make things better for all special needs kids. So gather all the information you can and then decide what to do.

Do check with your private insurance, as well.

He's not in the school anymore?

Ignore it. Better yet, write them and invite them to sue. If they do so, they can explain to the judge how they let your son get out of control, and did not provide him with a safe and effective behavior plan.

I don't know if the special school is public or private, but either way the assumption is that they have that designation because they are supposed to be able to deal with meltdowns and other AS issues. If they are private, they presumably advertise or promote themselves on that basis.

To me, that strengthens your case. I would definitely second the suggestion about checking out the Wright's Law website for specifics; but sending a letter in response complaining about their lack of oversight etc. sounds to me like a sensible approach.