Can you sue a pool company for an injury?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Can you sue a pool company for an injury?
My 2 year old son was standing near a sliding door at a pool and someone came through it which made it slide over my son’s feet causing a bad injury. We then went to the hospital. There where no signs warning of the risk.
Asked on February 4, 2017 under Personal Injury, Alaska
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
You can only sue the pool company if you can show that the door was unreasonably unsafe as it is designed, so that it either needs warnng signs, etc. or needed to be redesigned. If it is not unreasonably unsafe, there is no liability--they are not at fault and therefore not liable or economically responsible for the injury. A "freak" or unusual accident does not show that the door was unreasonably unsafe--people can be injured by anything under the correct circumstances, without those things being defective or requiring warnings. For example, someone can have their fingers mangled or possibly severed by a car door if they have their hand on the door frame and someone else slams it shut; the fact that can happen, and has in fact happened, has not meant that car manufactuers need to put warnings on car doors to not have your hands on the frame when closing them.
In the case you describe, it is unlikely that you can show that the sliding door was unreasonably unsafe: there are many sliding doors all over the place, and the fact that they can possibly slide over someone's feet has not made the law or society consider them unsafe.
In addition, if your son's injury was caused in whole or even in part by your negligence, such as in not keeping better control over your 2-year old and keeping him away from a door, that would also tend to negate your ability to recover compensation. Based on what you write, there are serious obstacles to you successfully suing.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.