Hagen Rosskopf on the Legal Implications of an Injury at the Gym
Many people trust their gym or fitness center to be a safe place to work out. Gyms are full of complex equipment that could cause injuries if safety requirements are neglected. It is also possible to slip, trip, and fall at the gym.
If you are injured at the gym, you may have legal recourse. Hagen Rosskopf, a personal injury attorney, gives a basic overview of the issues surrounding injuries at the gym.
Situations Where Lawsuits are Possible
Victims of injuries could potentially recover monetary damages when they are injured at a gym or fitness center. To receive compensation, you need to file a personal injury lawsuit. If you are hurt at the gym, you could sue for lost wages, pain and suffering, medical bills, punitive damage, and property damage.
It may be challenging to find who was responsible for your injury. It is possible that there are multiple causes for the accident. A full investigation must be done to determine who is at fault.
Types of Injuries that Occur
Common causes of injuries at the gym include slip-and-fall injuries, defective equipment, product liability, employee negligence, failure to maintain equipment, unsafe conditions, reckless behavior by staff or fellow clients, and fights between members.
Some states carry negligence laws that state that a negligent party must be liable for injuries. The negligent party is often the owner or manager of the gym or fitness center.
Recovering Damages
In order to recover damages, the victim of the injury needs to be able to show that the defendant was negligent. The definition of negligence is that the defendant owed the victim duty of care. Breaching that duty of care is part of being negligent. Proving negligence also involves the judgment that it was a substantial factor in causing the injury.
What to Do After You Are Injured
Your first priority should be receiving medical attention. Many people who are injured at the gym decide not to seek medical attention, but injured parties should remember that these problems could cause severe pain or dysfunction at a later date if they are not treated. Most injuries at the gym involve neck, spine, back, or head injuries. It is especially important to be cautious with these areas of the body since they could cause long-lasting impairment.
Next, contact a personal injury attorney. You will need professional support to determine your course of action. You will need to talk to witnesses in the gym to see whether anyone saw exactly what happened.
If equipment malfunctioned, encourage the gym to keep the equipment so it can be examined by an expert. Take photos that can be used as evidence.
Who Is to Blame for an Accident?
If you are injured at the gym, there could be a range of responsible parties. This could be people who directly caused the injury or people who failed to follow safety regulations. Property owners, trainers, gym owners, other members, employees, and third-party equipment inspectors could be responsible.
Determining Liability
Premises liability laws in many states hold that property owners have a duty to their customers and other visitors. The owner is generally required to keep the property safe and repair any hazardous conditions or post clear warnings.
Property owners are required to properly maintain their premises, to inspect them regularly, and to make sure that the premises are reasonably free of hazards. For example, if the floor is slippery or if a mat is torn, falls could result.
Trainers and Injuries
In some cases, a trainer could be fully or partly responsible for the injury. If the trainer gives unsafe directions or pushes the victim to do something that other trainers wouldn’t due to their fitness level, they could be liable for injuries. A judge or jury would have to decide whether the directions were unsafe.
Gym Employees Causing Injuries
Gym accidents can be caused by a lack of supervision, lack of training, negligent hiring, intentional wrongful acts, or understaffing. In some states, the employer can be sued for the employee’s actions. If not, the employee will have to be sued on their own.
Other Members Causing Injuries
When gym members are careless or reckless, injuries may occur. These can stem from problems like not wiping up water spills, not stacking weights correctly, or interfering with others through their exercising.
In order to recover damages, the personal injury attorney could potentially demonstrate that the defendant was negligent. If the other member owed the victim a “duty of care” and this was breached, this could be a cause for a lawsuit.
Damages that Could Be Awarded
If a personal injury attorney helps a victim successfully sue the responsible party, they could receive any number of compensatory damages. These include but are not limited to medical supplies, lost wages, medical and hospital bills, physical therapy, and prescriptions. Lost earning capacity and pain and suffering are also possibilities.
Be Careful at the Gym
Prevention is the best cure for injuries at the gym. Before you work out, do a complete survey of the room and look for dangerous objects. Look out for negligent fellow members and broken equipment. You should also practice personal responsibility and follow proper guidelines for stretching and using each machine.
