Water Park Accidents FAQ

What Types Of Water Park Accident Injuries Are Compensable?

Water park accidents have the potential to cause injuries that can change a person’s life forever. At the Law Offices of John Rapillo, our attorneys are prepared to help you and your family recover damages for any water park injury that you may suffer, including:

• Broken bones
• Lacerations
• Concussion
• Brain injury
• Spinal cord injury
• Chest injury
• Neurological impairment
• Lung and breathing disorders caused by drowning
• Catastrophic injury
• Death

Who Can Be Financially Responsible For Your Water Park Injuries?

In California, anyone who contributes to the cause of an accident or injury can be liable for your injuries. If more than one person is at fault, each can be held responsible for a portion of a victim’s damages.

Water parks are classified as amusement parks in California. As a result, they are also considered to be common carriers who have a heightened duty of care to passengers and guests. The laws state that water parks must “take all human care, vigilance and foresight reasonably necessary under the circumstances to avoid harm” to guests and passengers. While a park cannot guarantee a visitor’s safety, it must do everything in its power to minimize the chances of an accident or injury.

When a water park breaches its duty of care to a guest, it can be held financially responsible for injuries. A water park may breach its duty of care if it fails to:

• Inspect water slides, pools and other attractions for defects
• Hire and/or train its employees properly
• Warn guests of hazards or dangers
• Clean up spills and slippery surfaces
• Address reported safety issues

Other Guests

When you visit a water park, you are probably not alone. In fact, you are probably surrounded by hundreds of other people. When visiting a park, all guests have an obligation to follow posted rules and act in a way that does not put others in harm’s way. When another guest engages in dangerous behavior, and you are injured as a result, that person may be responsible for damages.

Parents

Children must be properly supervised at all times at a water park. When children are unsupervised, the chances of suffering a serious or fatal injury increase significantly. If a child is injured at a water park, a parent may be responsible if they were negligent in the supervision of that child.

What happens if both a parent and a water park are mutually responsible for a child’s injuries? In California, the parents would not be barred from recovering compensation. Instead, their ability to get damages from the water park would be reduced by their own degree of fault. If the parent is deemed to be 50% at fault, they would only be able to recover 50% of their damages from the park.

Water Slide Manufacturers

Sometimes a water park may not know that its water slides and other water attractions contain dangerous defects. When a water slide is defective, the company that is responsible for designing, manufacturing and/or selling that product can be held strictly liable for resulting injuries. If the water park was aware of the defect but failed to take steps to fix the situation, they may also be on the hook for damages.

What Compensation Is Available For Victims Of Water Park Injuries?

In California, water park accident victims may be entitled to both compensatory and noneconomic damages.

Compensatory Damages

Awarded to compensate victims for verifiable present and future financial costs related to their accident, including:

• Medical bills
• Medication
• Rehabilitation
• Disability
• Lost earnings

Noneconomic Damages

Awarded to compensate victims for hard-to-value injuries that are caused by a traumatic accident. Examples can include:

• Pain and suffering
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Scarring
• Disfigurement
• Loss of enjoyment of life

How Long Do I Have To File A Lawsuit For My Water Park Injury?

If you or someone in your family has suffered a water park injury, you have a limited amount of time to file a claim for damages. The statute of limitations for bodily injury claims is two years from the date of an accident. Failing to file your claim in this time frame will prevent you from recovering the money you need.

You may be able to extend the period in which you can file a claim if there is a reasonable delay in the discovery of your accident-related injury. In these cases, you will have one year from the date you discover the injury to file a claim.

Get In Touch With An Experienced Team Right Away

Don’t wait to get answers to your questions after a water park injury. Call the Law Offices of John Rapillo as soon as possible for a free consultation. We have helped thousands of families in Orange County recover optimal compensation for their injuries.  Email us or call 949-675-5060.