In California, almost everyone goes to the gym. After all, who doesn’t want to look great in a bikini? Unfortunately, the gym is one of the most common places for injuries to occur. From simple injuries like pulling a muscle to slipping and falling due to a wet floor in the locker room, you may be curious as to whether you have the right to sue the gym for the injury that you sustained while working out there.
Well, it depends.
Generally, to enter a gym to work out, you must have a membership. This means that you likely signed a liability waiver. Because heavy lifting and certain exercise routines can actually lead to injury, it isn’t uncommon for gym owners to require some sort of a liability waiver to be signed by you. It protects them in the event that something does occur. However, there are different types of waivers so you would benefit from determining which one you signed because you may find that you can still pursue legal action.
Depending on how specific the terms are, you may be able to use a waiver of total liability against the gym in court. However, a negligence waiver is generally upheld in court. If you signed a liability waiver for intentional acts, then you need to call us at Cohn & Swartzon, P.C. immediately. This type of waiver is not permitted for gym owners to request of their members. Also, if a gym owner did not perform maintenance on a piece of equipment that they knew was broken, then you likely have a claim against them.
Just like other business owners, gym owners have the responsibility of ensuring that the workout facility is safe to a reasonable standard for gym members. They have a duty to regularly inspect and fix prospective dangers and defects of equipment. When this duty of care is overlooked, gym members that have become injured due to the owner’s negligence of facility and equipment care have the legal right to file a premises liability claim against the owner.
Now, it is recommended to go about this on your own. Gym owners – like other business owners – can be very difficult to deal with. They will typically try to offer you a lifetime membership or so many free months in order to get you to settle and not pursue a claim in a court of law. However, if you are seriously injured, you are entitled to recover monetary compensation for the injuries that you sustained.
Call Cohn & Swartzon, P.C. so that we can discuss your situation and determine what legal options are available to you. We won’t give up without a fight and will ensure that you get the maximum amount of compensation possible for your injuries.