The thing the driver, road contractor, and insurer hope you never find out is this: in Michigan, those are often two different claims, and the smarter first move depends on what hit your child.

If a car, pickup, dump truck, or other motor vehicle was involved, use no-fault first. Michigan no-fault pays PIP benefits for medical care and some wage-loss replacement for a parent providing care, even before fault is sorted out. Usually the claim starts with the injured child's household auto insurer. If there is no household policy, the fallback may be the Michigan Assigned Claims Plan. For pain and suffering, that is a separate lawsuit against the at-fault driver or company, but only if your child has a serious impairment of body function. Michigan also uses modified comparative fault: if your child is found more than 50% at fault, there is no recovery on that fault-based claim.

If no motor vehicle was involved - for example, a trench collapse, unsecured steel plate, falling sign, or heavy equipment swinging into a sidewalk area - don't start with no-fault, because it may not apply at all. That is usually a premises or negligence claim against the contractor, subcontractor, or property owner. In Lansing during construction season, figuring out whether the site was controlled by MDOT, the City of Lansing, or the Ingham County Road Department matters right away.

If the dangerous condition was on a government roadway or sidewalk, act fastest there. Michigan has strict notice rules, and some highway-defect claims require notice within 120 days with the exact location and what made it unsafe. That can matter on roads like Saginaw Street, Cedar Street, or near I-496 work zones where city and state responsibility can be easy to mix up.

So the short version:

• Motor vehicle involved: file no-fault/PIP first, then evaluate a lawsuit.
• No motor vehicle involved: skip no-fault and focus on the negligent contractor/property claim.
• Government road or sidewalk involved: preserve the claim fast because notice deadlines can be brutal.