The desire to take care of our body leads many of us to the gym, the perfect place to work on our physique and health. But what happens when you end up causing yourself more harm than good? Injuries at the gym can arise from any number of situations, ranging from things like overworked muscles through to faulty equipment or an unsafe environment.
If you have injured yourself at the gym, you may feel a little hesitant to go back in case something happens again. You may also feel disheartened to see your hard work being lost while you are side-lined with an injury. As such, it is something that every person who visits the gym looks to avoid!
You may also be wondering about your options if you have been injured at the gym. If you believe that your gym has failed in their duty of care to you and other visitors of the premises, you may be eligible to claim gym injury compensation.
Can you Sue a Gym for Injury?
When signing up for a gym, you will almost always have a written contract to sign. Gyms will often do this to protect themselves from liability in the event their members injure themselves whilst on premises, among other reasons.
This, however, does not mean that you are not eligible to make a claim for compensation in the event of injury whilst in the gym. They still owe their patrons and clients a duty of care, which leaves them liable if a breach results in injury.
Can you Sue a Personal Trainer for Injury?
Gym negligence cases can be complicated further by the popular working arrangement that many modern gyms deploy, where personal trainers are not employed by the gym but are instead listed as contractors. In this case, the personal trainer still owes a duty of care to their clients and breaching this leaves them liable.
It is similar to situations where a personal trainer that is not attached to a gym at all is responsible for you and owe you a duty of care. For example, if they run outdoor workshops or boot camps the same duty of care applies.
Gym Negligence Case Examples
Perhaps the most famous case of gym negligence from recent years involved the untimely death of a 15-year-old boy in a Brisbane gym in late 2017. The teenager had been attempting to bench press roughly 100 kilograms, and in failing to do so was pinned beneath the weight without being discovered for an unclear period of time. The rules of the PCYC gym in which the incident occurred state that those under the age of 16-years-old were required to be supervised when using weights equipment.
Not only was the gym negligent in upholding this policy, but they were negligent with basic supervision as the teen remained trapped for an unconfirmed amount of time. Had the gym seen his predicament earlier, they may have been able to save his life.
This is an extreme example of a gym failing in their duty of care for a visitor. There are numerous, more common incidents that may warrant a gym injury compensation claim. These may include a personal trainer pushing you to perform an exercise out of your means, faulty equipment that fails and causes injury or an unsafe environment that causes a preventable injury.
If you’re unsure about whether your injury would warrant a compensation claim, contact the expert team at Sinnamon Lawyers. For more information about the duty of care that you are owed in a gym, read our FAQs about accidents on private and public property.