How To Make A Gym Accident Claim

We visit the gym or leisure centre to enhance our physical health and mental well-being. So, if you have suffered an injury at the gym and it wasn’t your fault, it can have a serious impact on your mental health and overall quality of life. If this has happened to you, you may have an eligible public liability claim. To help you understand when you may be able to make a gym accident claim, we have created this informative guide.

Essential Information

• You typically have 3 years to start your gym accident claim
• A gym injury can range from a broken ankle to a serious brain injury
• A gym accident can range from a slip, trip or fall to an injury involving a faulty piece of equipment
• The more evidence you have to support your claim, the more likely it is to succeed
• Here at Advice, our solicitors can offer their legal help on a No Win No Fee basis

In the meantime, if you have any immediate questions regarding your gym accident claim, please get in touch using the contact information below:

Contact Us

• Phone us on 0161 509 2856
• Contact us online
• Talk to us using our live chat

Jump To A Section

1. Can I Make A Gym Accident Claim?
2. What Are The Most Common Causes For Gym Accidents?
3. Can I Claim If I Was Injured Whilst Working At The Gym?
4. The Average Gym Injury Claim Payout Amount
5. What Evidence Is Needed For Gym Accident Claims?
6. Is There A Gym Injury Claims Time Limit?
7. What Are No Win No Fee Gym Accident Claims?
8. Learn More

Can I Make A Gym Accident Claim?

Yes, you can make a gym accident claim as long as you can establish that negligence took place. In personal injury law, negligence looks like this:

1. You were owed a duty of care
2. This duty was breached
3. You were injured as a result

While in a public place, such as a gym, the party in control of that space has a duty of care to ensure your reasonable safety, as set out under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. This could include performing regular risk assessments and ensuring all machinery is maintained to a safe standard.

However, just because you’ve sustained an injury whilst at the gym does not automatically mean that you have an eligible gym accident claim. To be more specific, let’s say you squatted with incorrect form using an Olympic platform and injured your lower back; you wouldn’t have a valid gym accident claim. This is because the fault lies with you, because you used the incorrect lifting technique, and negligence did not occur.

To provide a clearer picture of what negligence looks like, we’ve included some examples later in this guide.

Can I Still Claim If I Was Partially To Blame?

Yes, you can still claim if you were partially to blame; specifically, this is known as split liability and refers to the division of responsibility for an accident between multiple parties.

When it comes to cases involving split liability, the amount of compensation you would receive would be adjusted in accordance with how much you contributed to the accident and your injuries. For example, if you were deemed to be 50% liable, you would receive 50% of the total compensation had you not been at all.

What If I Signed A Waiver When I Joined My Gym?

Even if you signed a waiver when you joined your gym, you could still make a compensation claim, provided that you can prove that negligence took place.

If you have signed a waiver and don’t know how to proceed with your gym accident claim, we’re here to help you. Call us today.

What Are The Most Common Causes For Gym Accidents?

Please find below the most common causes for gym accidents:

Slips, Trips and Falls

If a gym has uneven flooring, unmarked spills, or free weights left out on the gym floor, it increases the likelihood of an accident occurring, specifically slips, trips, and falls that can result in strains and sprains.

Equipment Malfunctions

Defective or poorly maintained gym equipment, such as a Smith machine with a faulty safety stop, can lead to broken bones and crush injuries.

Lack Of Supervision

If gyms aren’t staffed with enough personal training personnel to supervise the gym floor, unsupervised situations can escalate into people getting hurt.

Falling Objects

Falling objects can cause devastating injuries, such as heavy weights not being stored properly on weight racks and falling from a height, causing injuries such as head injuries, spinal injuries and foot injuries.

If one of these incidents has happened to you or is similar to your gym accident, please speak with our dedicated team today.

Can I Claim If I Was Injured Whilst Working At The Gym?

Yes, you can claim if you were injured whilst working at the gym as long as your employer breached their duty of care towards you, and this acted as the catalyst for your gym accident and subsequent injury.

Specifically, the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 acknowledges that your employer is legally obligated to provide you with a duty of care by taking reasonable steps to ensure your safety. If they fail to do so in one way or another and this directly causes you to suffer an injury or series of injuries, you may have a valid gym accident claim.

Examples Of Workplace Gym Accidents

Please find below examples of workplace gym accidents:

• Several employees have reported that a shelving unit in the cleaning cupboard is sagging below the weight of the cleaning products and is no longer safe. Despite these reports, the employer fails to repair or replace the shelving unit. The unit collapses on top of an employee, causing them to suffer various crush injuries.
• An employer fails to provide a new employee with manual handling training, which is crucial when clearing away heavy weights in a gym environment. The new employee attempts to lift a free weight using the wrong lifting technique and suffers a slipped disc.
• An employer fails to carry out regular maintenance checks on a revolving door at the front of the gym, despite gym goers complaining about the door making a strange noise. An employee arrives for work and uses the revolving door, which malfunctions and traps their arm in the door, causing them to suffer an elbow injury.

If you’re an employee and you believe you have an eligible workplace gym accident claim, please connect with one of our friendly advisors.

The Average Gym Injury Claim Payout Amount

The average gym injury claim payout amount is calculated by summing up all the settlements and dividing the total by the number of claims. However, since every claim is unique in its circumstances, it may be more beneficial to learn how compensation is calculated.

A compensation settlement for a successful personal injury claim could consist of general and special damages.

General damages cover the pain and suffering you have experienced as a result of your gym injury. It takes into account:

• The severity of an injury
• The impact the injury has had on an individual’s life
• The presence of psychological injury, such as PTSD or depression
• Whether there is disfigurement or deformity
• Any lasting effects, such as mobility issues or a permanent disability

Personal injury solicitors frequently utilise the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to calculate compensation for their clients. This is because the JCG contains a wide variety of injuries, their severities and their related guideline compensation brackets.

We have provided you with a list that contains carefully selected compensation brackets from the JCG. Please note that the first figure in this list has not been sourced from the JCG, and these brackets are intended to serve as a guideline only.

Compensation Guidelines

1. Multiple Very Severe Forms of Harm with Special Damages – Up to £1 Million+ – Encompasses multiple very severe forms of harm and special damages, including loss of earnings and medical expenses.
2. Paralysis: Tetraplegia – £396,140 to £493,000 – The claimant will have suffered serious paralysis from the neck down and will be fully aware of their disability.
3. Paralysis: Paraplegia – £267,340 to £346,890 – The award will be influenced by the presence and extent of pain, level of independence, presence of depression, age and life expectancy, as well as any impact on sexual function.
4. Brain & Head Injury: Very Severe – £344,150 to £493,000 – The influences that will affect this award range from the claimant’s degree of insight to the presence of epilepsy and how well it’s managed.
5. Brain & Head Injury: Moderately Severe – £267,340 to £344,150 – The claimant will be very physically disabled, and the above influential factors will also apply in this award bracket.
6. Brain & Head Injury: Moderate (i) – £183,190 to £267,340 – The claimant will have suffered a moderate to severe intellectual deficit, a personality change, an effect on sight, speech, and senses with a significant risk of epilepsy, and no prospect of employment.
7. Neck Injury: Severe (ii) – £80,240 to £159,770 – The claimant will usually have suffered serious fractures or damage to discs in the cervical spine.
8. Foot Injury: Severe – £51,220 to £85,460 – The claimant will have sustained fractures of both heels or feet with a substantial restriction on mobility or considerable and permanent pain. The bracket will also include unusually severe injury to a single foot.
9. Back Injury: Moderate (i) – £33,880 to £47,320 – This bracket contains a wide variety of injuries, which can include a case of a compression/crush fracture of the lumbar vertebrae where there is a substantial risk of osteoarthritis and constant pain and discomfort.

How Is Gym Injury Compensation Calculated?

Gym injury compensation is calculated under two heads of claim: general damages, as mentioned above, and special damages.

The latter is designed to compensate you for any financial losses you have incurred because of your gym injury. Special damages are particularly important in serious injury claims where claimants incur significant financial losses due to the gym accident.

We’ve provided some examples of what financial losses can look like:

• Medical bills
• Loss of earnings
• Loss of future earnings
• Care costs
• Travel expenses
• Adaptations to property
• Any other out-of-pocket expenses

Notably, in order to submit a request for special damages, your solicitor will require evidence of your financial losses in the form of documented costs such as:

• Payslips articulating loss of earnings
• Invoices from private medical treatment, such as prescriptions
• Receipts from transport use

If you wish to determine whether your gym accident claim qualifies for special damages, please get in touch with us today so we can assist you.

What Evidence Is Needed For Gym Accident Claims?

The evidence needed for gym accident claims must show two important details:

• The occupier of the gym is liable for your injury
• That you suffered the injury on the gym premises

We want to reassure you that many things can serve as strong pieces of evidence, and we’ve provided some examples to help you below:

• Medical records
• Photograph of the injury site
• Photograph of the accident site
• CCTV footage
• Contact details from witnesses
• An accident logbook

Here at Advice, we are empathetic to the fact that the thought of finding and securing evidence while you’re recovering from a potentially serious gym injury can be too much at once. One of our solicitors can gather evidence on your behalf. Call us to find out more.

Is There A Gym Injury Claims Time Limit?

Yes, there is a gym injury claims time limit, and it’s typically 3 years from the date you suffered the injury to start the claims process, as per the Limitation Act 1980. Applying within this window is a legal obligation, and if you fail to do so, your gym accident claim will be dismissed and registered as time-barred.

With that being said, the act does outline specific exemptions from this 3-year window, and we’ve provided the exempt individuals below:

• A vulnerable adult lacking the mental capacity to file a claim on their own. The time limit will apply if their capacity returns and runs from this date.
• A minor who is too young to file a claim independently. The child can claim from their 18th birthday and will have until their 21st birthday to start their gym accident claim.

If the gym accident claim involves either a vulnerable adult or a minor, a litigation friend can claim on their behalf, whilst the time limit is put on hold. Typically, a family member or someone close to the protected party will become a litigation friend. Simply put, the litigation would be responsible for various elements of the claims process, including decision-making, representation and communicating with the relevant legal professionals. The important thing to remember is that the litigation friend will have the protected person’s best interests in mind at all times during the gym accident claim process.

If you would like to discuss the gym accident claim time limit with someone, we’re here to help. Contact us for free today.

What Are No Win No Fee Gym Accident Claims?

No Win No Fee gym accident claims are when you claim with a solicitor on a No Win No Fee basis. Our solicitors have decades of experience behind them and are expertly equipped to help you claim compensation. They also provide their support on a No Win No Fee basis via a specific contract known as a Conditional Fee Agreement.

This contract comes with several important benefits:

• You won’t pay for solicitors’ fees if your claim fails
• You won’t pay for solicitors’ fees while your claim is ongoing
• You won’t pay any upfront solicitors’ fees

If your claim wins, you will pay a success fee for your solicitor’s work towards your gym accident claim. This fee is paid directly out of your compensation and is capped as a legally limited percentage, as per the Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013.

Why Work With Our Solicitors?

Here at Advice, our solicitors understand how important it is for every claimant to feel supported during the gym accident claims process. Consequently, they provide a long list of support services designed to make filing your gym accident claim as stress-free as possible. These include, but are not limited to:

• Represent you in negotiations and court proceedings
• Follow instructions to the letter and meet every deadline punctually
• Secure you medical treatment that might not be available on the NHS
• Arrange an independent medical assessment to establish the harm done and ensure that any treatment and rehabilitation needs are met
• Gather evidence on your behalf, for example, witness statements and police records
• Communicate with the defendant’s solicitors and keep you informed of what is happening with your claim
• Negotiate a final settlement amount

Our job is to provide you with exceptional support and secure you the highest possible gym accident compensation. Let us help you. We’re available 24/7. Get in touch with our team of friendly advisors using the contact information below to make a gym injury claim today:

Contact Advice Today

• Phone us on 0161 509 2856
• Contact us online
• Talk to us using our live chat

Learn More

For more information on making a medical negligence claim, take a look at some of our other guides:

• Read our guide on how serious injury claim lawyers can help you.
• Learn about claiming for severe PTSD.
• Read our guide on pursuing a personal injury claim with a pre-existing condition.

Or, for more helpful resources:

• Have a look and see if you’re eligible for Statutory Sick Pay (SSP).
• Did your gym accident get caught on CCTV? Request CCTV footage of yourself from GOV.UK.
• Read through some advice from the NHS on navigating a broken leg.

Thank you for taking the time to read our guide on how to make a gym accident claim.