Can You Sue a Water Park if Your Child Is Injured?

With summer approaching, many families in Columbus plan visits to local water parks for fun and relief from the heat. However, if your child is injured at a waterpark, it’s important to know your legal options seeking justice and compensation.

Generally, you can sue a water park if your child is injured, but it can be challenging. You need to prove that the water park owners or employees were negligent, resulting in your child’s injury. Simply having an accident on the water park’s property is not enough; you must show that the water park has breached its duty of care.

For example, if the water park failed to make necessary repairs, conduct inspections, or maintain the slides and equipment, this negligence could be a major factor in your child’s injury. An experienced personal injury attorney can help gather the evidence needed to support your claim.

What if I signed a liability waiver at the water park?

Most water parks require guests to sign liability waivers, which typically state that the park is not liable for injuries or accidents. By signing this document, you agree to this statement. However, these waivers do not always hold up in the state of Ohio courts. Even if you signed a waiver, consult a lawyer to see if it can be challenged or dismissed. Your lawyer may find ways to circumvent the waiver and pursue your claim.

Other parties that you can sue for a water park accident

In addition to the water park, there may be other parties your attorney might suggest suing, such as:

• Employees: Suing employees is challenging, but possible if there is proof of intentional harm.
• Manufacturers or engineers: If your child was injured while going down a slide, swimming in the pool, or using certain products or equipment at the water park, you may be able to sue the manufacturer or engineer of the slide, pool, or product. It is the engineer or manufacturer’s responsibility to ensure that the structure, equipment, and products that people use are safe and hazard-free. Therefore, you should bring this to your attorney’s attention if you believe that the manufacturer or engineer may be liable for your child’s accident.

Can I sue a water park for their negligent hiring practices?

Yes, you can sue a water park for their negligent hiring practices, but you will need strong evidence to support your claim. Here are some instances of when you can file a lawsuit against a water park for negligent hiring:

• Failure to conduct a background check
• Failure to check applicant references
• Failure to hire an applicant with adequate qualifications and experience
• Failure to conduct a drug test

When a water park hires an employee who they should have reasonably known lacked the experience or skills for a job, they can be held liable. Employers are responsible for ensuring that their employees do not pose a risk to visitors and must provide proper training if necessary.

Establishing foreseeability in a claim against a dangerous property

Water park owners may argue that they were unaware of a malfunctioning slide or hazardous substance in the water. e. However, if you can demonstrate that a reasonable person would have identified the issue or that the hazard and injury was foreseeable or anticipated, you may be able to hold the water park liable. To establish foreseeability, you need to show that the water park owner’s actions or inactions led to the harm, which was reasonably predictable. For example, if there were tangled wires near a pool, it is foreseeable that a child might trip over them, leading to an injury.

Common causes of injuries at water parks

Children can sustain injuries at water parks in various ways, including:

• Slipping and falling on the wet and slippery surfaces
• Water slide defects and malfunctions
• Lifeguard mistakes and errors
• Collisions on water slides
• Overcrowded pools and walking areas
• Falling from water slides
• Slide entrapments
• Workers failing to check and enforce size and weight requirements
• Chemical and bacterial infections and irritants
• Heat-related injuries and sunburns

Was your child recently injured at a water park in Columbus? If so, the personal injury lawyers at Soroka & Associates are here to help you. Our team has several years of experience assisting injured victims of all ages, and we will do everything we can to help you recover compensation for your child’s medical bills, prescriptions, and other recovery expenses. To begin building a case against the water park, please call our office or submit our contact form to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation in Columbus today.