For many gym goers, the hazards can be incredibly obvious. From the heavy lifting to the potential dangers of pulling a muscle due to improper work out techniques. However, there are specific incidents where a gym can be held liable for injuries. Gyms are expected to provide a reasonably safe environment for their members, and when there is a failure to meet this expectation, the gym can be held liable for the damages inflicted. When suing a gym for injury, it is highly recommended that you seek legal representation from a health club or gym injury lawyer. At Normandie Law, our Los Angeles gym and health club accident attorneys have a wealth of experience at representing those who have suffered injuries as a result of the negligence or misconduct of gym or health club owners. If you have any questions after reading this article, please feel free to reach out to our law offices located in Los Angeles, California, for a free consultation from our well-versed legal advisors.
Gym, Health Club, and Fitness Center Accidents
Gyms, Health Clubs, and Fitness Centers all offer spaces for members to work out using their equipment or attending athletic classes usually provided by the location’s owners and managers. When members visit these places, they are often made aware of the risks that come with using their services and equipment. However, many of the injuries that these members experience are not caused by the gym and as a result cannot result in legal action. For example, if you suffer a pulled muscle at a gym while using equipment, or twist your ankle on a treadmill you cannot file a claim for compensation. This is because, members are asked to sign gym liability waivers, protecting the gym from most potential claims. However, if your injury was caused by defective gym equipment, or the gym’s failure to supervise the premises, the victim may be able to file a suit against the gym in question. When filing your claim, it is incredibly important to be able to identify the gym responsibly. Listed below, are some of the gyms, fitness centers, and health clubs scattered across the L.A area, where you could suffer a gym injury:
- 24-hour Fitness
- Planet Fitness
- LA Fitness
- Equinox
- Sports Club
- Bally’s Total Fitness
- Spectrum Health Club
- 360 Health Club
- YMCA
- Gold’s Gym
- Crunch
- Easton Gym Co
As well as being able to identify where your accident occurred, it is incredibly important that you can also prove the injuries that you suffered. While the injuries caused by gym accidents can vary dramatically, certain injuries occur more commonly than others. Listed below are some of these common injuries:
- Head Injuries: Head injuries can range from minor contusions (or brain bruising) to more severe traumatic brain injuries or TBIs. Some TBIs can cause ongoing seizures, mood changes, cognitive impairment and other debilitating symptoms. In most cases, head injuries require emergency room treatment, or hospitalization and in more severe cases can result in death.
- Hip Fractures: Hip fractures often require surgery and extended hospitalization. In some more severe cases, surgery may be necessary to implant an artificial hip. Out of every five hip fracture patients, one of them dies due to their injuries
- Back and Spinal Cord Injuries: Injury to the spinal cord can lead to permanent paralysis, temporary paralysis and other severe neurological and sensory impairments
- Shoulder Injuries: accidents caused by faulty gym equipment or poor supervision can result in shoulder dislocations or more severe forms of shoulder injuries called brachial plexus injuries. The brachial plexus is a network of nerves that connect the shoulder, arm, and hand to the spinal cord. These injuries are often treated with surgery followed by extensive physical therapy
- Sprains and Fractures: Gym accidents can also result in minor to severe bone injuries. In some cases, the impact of the ground could cause minor sprains, in others; it could cause debilitating bone breakage that may result in temporary disability. Some of the common fractures that victims suffer include hip, spine, forearm, leg, ankle, pelvis, upper arm and hand.
As mentioned prior, the process of suing a gym, health club, or fitness center for the damages caused by accident can be incredibly challenging because many of these places require that members sign liability waivers. However, if you signed a liability release form and suffered an injury at a gym you still may be able to collect monetary compensation for your damages. With the help of a gym injury attorney, you could find a satisfactory settlement for your case that can be used to cover damages such as medical expenses, a loss of wages, and even a potential loss of future wages.
How To Sue A Gym, Health Club, or Fitness Center For An Accident
Usually, when you join a gym, health club, or fitness center, they will ask that you sign a liability waiver to protect them from any accidents that may occur on the premises. As a result, if you signed a liability waiver, it is unlikely that you will be able to sue the gym for any accidents like a pulled muscle, or an injury caused by improper use of gym equipment. However, the waiver can be left invalid, if your injuries are caused by an accident which resulted from the blatant negligence of the gym staff or owners. For example, if your accident was caused by a weight falling on your head as a result of faulty gym equipment you could sue the gym for the injuries. This is also true if there is a hazard at the gym which the gym failed to remedy within a reasonable amount of time. Under premises liability, a property owner can be found liable for the damages of an accident caused by their negligence or misconduct; liability waiver or not. With every lawsuit involving premises liability you must be able to prove that the following was present in your case:
- There was a hazardous condition or potentially dangerous condition on the property, like faulty workout equipment or a slippery floor, which presented an unreasonable risk of harm.
- The property owner should have been aware of the dangerous condition
- The property owner failed to either warn guests of a reasonable condition and did not take reasonable action to remedy the issue.
- The hazardous condition resulted in the injury of a tenant or patron.
Unfortunately, proving liability is only one aspect involved with filing a personal injury lawsuit against a gym. When you suffer an accident at a gym caused by the staff or management’s negligence, it is highly recommended that you collect all the evidence you can to support your claims. This evidence can take the form of photographs, medical records, security cams, or eyewitness testimonies. Regardless of the evidence you collect, it is crucial that you report your accident as soon as possible. If you wait to report your accident to the management or staff, their defense attorneys may be able to deny your claims of liability.
Another large aspect of filing a lawsuit against a gym is the statute of limitations. The statute of limitations is the time limit imposed by individual states, which indicate how long an injured party has to bring their case to court. If the injured individual fails to adhere to this statute, their case will likely be dismissed from court. For example, in the state of California, victims of personal injury have two years from the date of the accident to bring their case to court. However, this is not the same case for other states, and as such, it is in your best interest that you seek legal guidance from an attorney well-versed on the statute of limitations enforced in your state.
As mentioned prior, you will need to be able to prove the negligence of the gym management, staff, or owners. Using the evidence gathered, you will need to show that the gym’s actions were negligent and that they directly led to your injuries. Listed below are the critical components of a claim of negligence:
- Duty: The plaintiff (injured or damaged party) must be able to show that the defendant (gym owner or property owner) owed a legal obligation to the plaintiff under the particular circumstances of the case.
- Breach: The plaintiff must be able to show that the defendant breached said legal duty through specific actions or failure to act appropriately
- Causation: The plaintiff must be able to prove that the defendant’s actions or lack thereof caused the plaintiff’s injuries
- Damages: The plaintiff must be able to show that they endured some specific damages. This aspect can usually be shown through the presentation of medical records, a loss of wages, or a loss of potential income.
In some cases, the gym can be found only partially liable for the injuries. This is true for suits involving faulty gym equipment. If defective equipment injured you at a gym, the equipment’s manufacturer could be found liable for the damages instead. Under product liability law, product manufacturers are expected to keep defective products out of the hands of consumers. This legal theory also states that if a defective product ends up in the hands of a consumer, and that consumer is injured, they have every right to sue the product manufacturer for the damages.
Regardless of the specific aspects of your case, having a skilled attorney by your side can mean the difference between filing a successful claim for compensation and having your case dismissed from court.
How Normandie Law Firm Can Help
If you or a loved one has suffered some form of gym accident injury, you may be eligible to file a claim for significant monetary compensation for your damages. Although when pursuing legal action against a gym owner it is highly recommended to have an attorney on your side that knows the ins and outs of premises liability law and gym injuries. At Normandie Law Firm our skilled Los Angeles gym injury attorneys can walk you through the whole process from filing a claim to collecting compensation for the damages suffered. If you file a claim through our Los Angeles law firm, you could find some if not all of the following damages compensable to you:
- Past & Future Medical Expenses
- Loss of Wages
- Potential Loss of Future Wages
- Pain and Suffering
- Emotional Distress (anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc.)
- Punitive Damages
Our Los Angeles attorneys have a wealth of experience in fighting for the rights of injured gym patrons and can help you sue the gym responsible for your damages. While our law firm is based in Los Angeles, our lawyers also practice in San Diego, San Francisco, Riverside, Oakland, Fresno, and throughout the entire state of California.
Free Second Opinions
Other attorneys will sign you up to their firm but will disappear once your name is on the paper as they are busy signing up more cases. In these instances, their business is based more on volume and will attempt to sign up as many cases as possible. In turn, they will spend less time on cases resulting in severely reduced settlements. Our firm will not treat you like a number. We will be in communication with you throughout our lawsuit and will treat you like family. So if you already have an attorney don’t worry, we’ll give you a second review of your case 100% free of charge.
Zero Fee Guarantee-No Upfront Fees Ever
If you contact our law offices today, we can walk you through the complicated process of filing your claim completely free of charge. As a show this commitment to you and your case we offer our clients the benefits of a zero fee guarantee policy. Under our zero fee policy, all clients don’t pay for our services until their case is won. If you feel in need of a second opinion, second opinion case reviews are also free under this policy. Please, feel free to give us a call, and we can guide you down the path of receiving proper compensation for your damages.
