All parents should have a plan in place should an emergency strike during school hours, according to Charlotte attorney, Sabrina Winters. Preparations include naming temporary guardians, listing the right people on school emergency cards and leaving detailed instructions with babysitters to avoid involvement with social services.
“Do you think a school emergency card is enough to protect your kids if something happens to you during school hours?” asks attorney Winters to a crowd of parents attending her popular Planning Outside The Box seminar last month in Charlotte.
The majority of the room raise their hand yes. A few parents are undecided. Yet from a legal standpoint, all of them are wrong.
“Contrary to popular belief, a school emergency card will not protect your children from spending time in the hands of social services if something tragic happens to you,” says Sabrina. “The emergency card only gives named contacts permission to pick your kid up if they are sick, not take short-term custody of them if one or both parents are killed or incapacitated in an accident,” she adds.
For this reason, Winters, an
estate planning lawyer in Charlotte, recommends parents create an emergency plan prior to going to back to school so there is no confusion or legal headaches should tragedy strike. According to Winters, this plan can be created in 3 easy steps:
1. Legally name temporary guardians for your kids- Temporary guardians are the people who have legal permission to care for your child until the surviving parent or long-term guardian can arrive. This should ultimately be someone who lives close by and one who will comfort your children in an emergency.
2. Make sure your temporary guardians match those named on the school emergency card- In addition to listing friends and neighbors who can pick your child up from school if he or she gets sick, it’s equally important to list the full contact information of your temporary guardians for true emergencies. Without this information, your children could be placed temporarily in the custody of social services until the surviving parent or legal guardian can arrive.
3. Make sure the babysitter knows what to do if you don’t return home- It’s extremely important that parents give their a.m. or p.m. babysitters detailed instructions on what to do and who to call if they don’t return home. In most cases, a babysitter will panic and turn to the police for help, again opening the door for social services to temporarily take custody of your kids until a long-term care provider can arrive.
“Creating a back-to-school emergency plan is so easy--- and something that will greatly pay off if a parent is injured or killed during school hours,” Sabrina says. “The first few hours after an emergency are the most painful for a child, so it’s important for parents to make sure their kids spend that time with people they love and trust, rather than in the arms of the state,” she adds.
For more information on Charlotte estate planning attorney Sabrina Winters, please visit www.ncestateplanninginfo.com or call 704-843-1446.
About Sabrina Winters
Sabrina's firm focuses on assisting families with all areas of Estate Planning (Wills, Revocable Living Trusts and Advanced Directives), Medicaid Planning and Elder Law. No matter what stage in life, Sabrina has the experience and resources to plan an estate to meet her clients' needs, wishes and goals. In addition to general estate planning services, Sabrina also assists clients with potential tax issues in implementing advanced tax planning strategies such as Dynasty Trusts, Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts and IRA Trusts.
Sabrina has been invited to speak to businesses, civic associations and parishes in the Charlotte area. In addition, she provides educational programs to the community throughout the year.
Sabrina respects that each client has different needs, wishes, and circumstances and that each has their own family dynamics. She treats each client as a person who has people that love them and depend on them and not just another client who needs a plan or assistance with an estate.
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