Injured at a Fitness Center? You Need a Lawyer
New year, new you – right? Gyms and fitness centers see an increase in customers during January as people start working on their New Year’s resolution to get in shape. It’s a great resolution, especially if you stick to it and improve your health.
Unfortunately, accidents and injuries happen at the gym. If you are working out at the gym and are injured through no fault of your own, you should consult a personal injury attorney. When you signed up for your fitness center membership, you probably signed a waiver saying that the gym cannot be held liable for injuries or death. You still might have a case for compensation, though.
There are a couple of ways a skilled gym accident attorney can fight to get you the compensation you deserve. Your attorney can argue that the language in the liability waiver is confusing, vague, or ambiguous. If the waiver was difficult to understand, it could be argued that the gym should be held liable for your injuries.
Depending on the situation, your attorney could argue that you were injured because of gross negligence. This is more than a simple mistake by an employee. It means the gym knowingly puts customers in danger.
For example, in Los Angeles, Studio City gym was sued by the family of a 65-year-old man who suffered a heart attack and died while working out. The gym’s insurance company argued that the man had signed a liability waiver and was working with a personal trainer who was not an employee of the gym.
The victim’s family argued the gym was grossly negligent for selling memberships to men and women of all ages with no automatic external defibrillator onsite, as required by state law. The gym eventually settled the lawsuit with the family.
If you are injured in a gym or fitness center, take the following steps:
- Report the injury to management.
- Get Prompt Medical Attention. Call an ambulance if you need to.
- Take pictures and videos of your injuries, broken equipment, wet floors, or anything else that could have caused your accident.
- Find helpful witnesses and ask them for full names and contact information. If you find a witness willing to write down what they saw, ask them to sign and date their statement.
- Keep detailed notes, including the names and job descriptions of everyone you talked to at the gym. Write down every communication you have with the insurance company or gym management.
- Collect expense records such as lost wages, ambulance bills, medical bills, and physical therapy bills to prove your injuries.
If you have been injured in a gym or fitness center accident, contact the experienced attorneys at the John Mobley Law Firm today. Even if you signed a liability waiver, you still might have a case to collect compensation. You have nothing to lose because your initial consultation is always free.