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Pole Indemnity Insurance
Hi guys, I wanted to ask if anyone had experienced either a) as an owner of studio and a student was injured by colliding with another student or b) are a student that has had an injury by colliding with another student or even on a pole and …. attempted to make a claim against the owner despite signing a waiver form.
I am curious to know if there are any rules/regulations anywhere in the world for pole studio set ups, eg no of poles allowed in a set space, distance between poles etc etc. As far as I know there aren't, have been to various workshops around Australia and also in UK and am not aware of any regulations, have found studios vary slight in the distance of poles and usually when attempting moves that I know may cause me to collide I either wait or move as appropriate. However, said student was stood in front of her pole for a routine that was done and stepped into my kick space – she would have been kicked anyway because of where she stood, it just so happened to be me because that's where she was. Despite her injury, she is now all well, but whilst pursuing a claim against studio for poles being too close together she continues to attend classes! I can't see how that is a good thing. Any thoughts on the matter would be greatly appreciated. Thanks guys. x
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8 Replies
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This to me is like suing a gym because you dropped a bar bell on your foot while lifting weights.
The part where she is still attending classes is also interesting. Sorry, I have no info for you, just shock.
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WOW, all I can say is WOW she has a lot of nerve. I have no idea how lawsuits work in the USA but I can imagine it has to be a conflict for her to be launching a lawsuit but still attending class?! ICK what a horrible person…seriously horrible.
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Not a lawyer…
A lot of waivers probably wouldn't hold up in court because of the way they are worded. I took a yoga class at a studio where the yoga teacher had a separate waiver for yoga class because the pole teachers didn't know how to write a proper waiver. She claimed that the way the general studio waiver was vaguely worded students could still sue if injured in any class.
I've signed a few "legal documents" that were written badly with completely obvious loopholes. After so many forms you start to get an idea of who has talked to a lawyer and who hasn't.
She still probably doesn't have a chance anyway.
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Hm. The good news is her lawsuit has little chance of succeeding IMO. It's a reasonable expectation that collision may happen with other students during a physical activity in an open space (and clearly she's not hurt that badly!). What sucks is you might have to go to court just to say so, and that costs money.
FYI @Piglet, In the U.S., if you sue someone, they can't discriminate against you (services or employment) because of the lawsuit. I worked at a club where a dancer sued management and continued to work.
So you are the instructor, and you accidentally kicked the student during a routine … is that what happened? And now she is suing?! Was it like black eye and bloody nose kind of kicked her?!
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Wowowowowow! Well, as I have recently been sued (over a 1 inch SCRATCH ON A CHROME BUMPER!!!) I will give you my 2 cents: if the student has signed a waiver, carefully review it to ensure what you will be up against (sometimes we forget what’s in that paperwork). To me, the fact that she still attends classes at that studio does seem like a conflict of interest, but at the same time, how many times have we had bad service at a restaurant we liked or frequented? For her to sue is a bit extreme, but I think she should’ve been aware of her surroundings IMO… I wish you the best of luck and for the record (I AM NOT A LAWYER 🙂
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Thanks for the input folks, it really is appreciated. I think I've gone to hell and back since it happened, feeling so bad despite being an accident! I was advised that she originally tried to claim towards cost of injury from studio owner and as the imdemity insurers said she didn't have to do that so now student is sueing on the grounds of poles being too close together. I have been booted on a couple of occasions whilst learning new moves and have seen others do the same and no one has ever pursued it. It does concern because it's like opening a can of worms, if she succeeds then will everyone else do it? Student has now signed up to the second highlest level routine which IMO has the hardest tricks/routine involved, so what if she gets injured again – be it self inflicted or from another student? This bothers me considerably. I love pole and can't imagine life without it, but if she succeeds in her claim I know the owner can't financially cover a pay out or changing the 22 poles we have, it would have such a massive negative effect that I think it would cause the studio to close. I am sure waiver was done with a lawyer but the way things are these days in this litigious society I doubt stands for bugger all ……. lawyers have their jobs to do and win the craziest of cases. Anyway thanks again I will keep you updated as and when I get news…. xx
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As a studio owner I live in fear of this. I have a lawyer as a client and when she saw my waiver (that was written by a fitness lawyer) she laughed her ass off. Then we bartered for a new waiver that covers everything and I mean everything. Will it keep lawsuits away? NO. Anyone can sue for anything. I screen my clients and am very picky about who I allow in my studio (the pleasure of being self employed). I also tell them in no uncertain terms… "You will get hurt, it may be just a pole burn or it could be a shoulder, back, knee etc… injury, are you ready for that?" Just to be sure clients know what they are getting into. As long as you stay within the guidelines of safety and I really have not seen any for Pole Fitness yet, you should win your case. This is new ground and you are correct that it could have "a massive negative effect" not only to the studio but to Pole Fitness industry that is just starting to be recognized by the Fitness Community. Best wishes and positive thoughts.
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Fireside is pretty much right, I think. Basically, any business is going to be the target of a liability action simply because it is standing there…existing. Period. Claims are often made as tactics for a settlement. My favorite claim of all time was against a GAS STATION across the street from the fire that killed 100 people in a bar due to a fireworks acicdent INSIDE THE BAR. Why did they sue the gas station? Because the owner of the gas station said it was OK for bar patrons to use his empty parking places at night! But the real reason was the connection with a multi-billion dollar company–Amoco. The bar had only a tiny bit of insurance, the lawywers hoped they could somehow draw Amoco into the suit…but it was completely irrelevant and the judge threw it out. But you can bet AMOCO spent some bucks on that one…
Your best bet is a line of liabuility insurance based on injury risk in a comparable setting. I'd talk to insurance agents that insure gymnastics studios and horse riding stables…other stuff like that and just hunker down and expect that in a lifetime sooner or later there will be a claim and a payout and that's just the nature of the business. Waivers don't mean all that much in the sense that in most states, gross negligence cannot ever be waivered away, so the plaintiff is going to search something out–like the dixie cups in the bathroom were too tiny and they choked to death on them…anything they can think of, lol… Furthermore, a lot of people have no choice on filing a lawsuit. All American health insurers just do it automatically anyway…and they don't care if the injured person wants to sue or not. They just sue for the re-imbursement with or without your permission. If you refuse to help them, they refuse to pay for your medecines or bills. So the client is in a bind one way or another…./joel
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