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The Liability of Owning a Swimming Pool

Published on December 14th, 2017

From a liability standpoint, swimming pools can be a huge headache for a homeowner. Although they are a lot of fun, any accidents that happen around their pool can leave them personally liable. As a result, special accident liability laws apply. As a homeowner, it is important to make sure that you minimize your risk in the event a lawsuit is brought forth. This occurs when a homeowner is educated around liability laws and have the proper insurance. A personal injury attorney can help to provide the homeowner with the necessary legal advice so that they are able to best protect themselves in the event of a lawsuit.

Insurance

Luckily for the homeowner, homeowners insurance covers the greater share of personal injury damages. Because of the liability of owning a pool, a homeowner must ensure that they have the appropriate coverage and inclusions within their policy to cover the pool. Depending on your insurance company, you may be required to have a separate policy. It can be difficult to deal with an insurance company following an accident. Regardless of a homowner’s coverage, insurance companies often do not want to cover accidents. Often an insurance company will try to prove that the person injured was to blame for their sustained injuries. If a visitor obtained an injury from a pool accident, they should consult with a personal injury lawyer even if the homeowner has the appropriate coverage.

Pool Construction, Maintenance and Prevention

It is important that a homeowner follow safety protocol when constructing a pool. A recent study conducted by the Center for Disease Control found that risk of child drowning in a pool decreases by 83% when there is a four sided fence installed around the pool. Installing appropriate items such as: fences and gates, equipping the pool area with non-slip pool surfaces, posted warning signs, etc; will not only minimize the risk of an accident; but protect the homeowner should a personal injury suit be brought forth. Putting the above effort into the construction and maintenance of the pool is vital, because in order for a person to bring forth a personal injury suit, they must prove that the homeowner was negligent. To further elaborate, the injured must prove that the homeowner did not warn people of potential hazards that caused the injury, for example a sign warning guests they could slip and fall. If a homeowner is not diligent in following safety, they could be held liable.

Attractive Nuisance Liability Defined

The attractive nuisance law can make homeowners liable in the event of an accident if a child trespasses onto the homeowners property and is injured. This is a loophole in liability law because a pool is something on the property that can attract children to it. In situations such as this, the homeowner could be responsible. Having a high fence with a locked gate is a way of keeping children away from the pool and coverage protection from the attractive nuisance liability.

Regardless of whether there is a need for a lawsuit to be brought forth, consulting with a personal injury attorney such as the personal injury lawyer DC locals trust is important.


Thanks to authors at The Law Offices of Frederick J. Brynn P.C. for their insight into Personal Injury law.

 

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