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May is Water Safety Month and with summer quickly approaching, pools will open to the public. Long summer days by the pool should be a welcome treat, but receiving an injury on someone else’s property is anything but welcoming. In fact, getting hurt because a property owner failed to keep their property conditions safe is grounds for a lawsuit. If you or someone you know sustained a pool injury on a property that was not your own, you may be wondering how the premises liability laws affect you.
Premises liability refers to any injury a person receives on someone else’s property. The injuries received may be caused by a property owners’ failure to warn pool visitors of unsafe conditions. Premises liability is commonly associated with slip and falls and dog bites, among various other accidents occurring on someone’s property. Premises liability laws refer to a set of rules used to determine whether the property owner should be held responsible when someone is injured on their property.
Owners of public and private swimming pools face liability if an individual is injured while on the owner’s property. However, there are exceptions to this. When it comes to trespassers, a pool owner’s only responsibility is to not purposely cause the trespasser harm. If a trespasser is a child, a pool owner has an obligation to take safety precautions. Children are always owed a duty of care, according to the attractive nuisance doctrine.
A pool owner is liable for injuries when dangerous conditions are not made obvious to the public. If a pool owner fails to provide emergency safety equipment or if there are no lifeguards supervising the pool, an owner may be held liable.
Invitees refer to individuals from the public who are invited to use the pool. Licensees refer to social guests using a private pool. Pool owners have an obligation to keep both invitees and licensees safe while they are on the property. If they fail to do this, they may be held liable for any injuries a person sustains.
Injuries that are common in premises liability accidents include:
If a person is injured on someone else’s property, it does not necessarily mean the property owner is liable. Negligence requires proving that a property owner was aware of unsafe conditions and failed to fix them, which led to the injury.
Premises liability laws can be confusing to navigate when filing a personal injury claim. A Wilmington personal injury lawyer at Jacobs & Crumplar, P.A. will get you through the process while fighting for your rights. For a free consultation, contact us online or call us at 302-656-5445. Located in Wilmington and Georgetown, Delaware, we serve clients throughout Dover, New Castle County, and Sussex County.