The case of an inexperienced rock-climber who severely injured himself after falling from a bouldering wall at a climbing centre has raised some important issues relating to liability in personal injury claims. Where a member of the public chose to engage in a physical activity where there was an obvious unavoidable risk of injury, there was no requirement for a defendant to prevent them from undertaking the activity, or to supervise them while they do so.
In an accident that took place back in 2002, a young man was attempting a climbing manoeuvre known as bouldering at a rock climbing centre in Portsmouth. Bouldering is low-level rock climbing without the use of ropes. The claimant had only climbed on the bouldering wall a handful of times before the accident, and had not received any training or a safety briefing before commencing the bouldering. The accident happened when he tried to copy a manoeuvre that another more experienced climber had just completed.
At the first trial, the judge found that the climbing centre had been in breach of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, but that this breach had only left them 25% liable for the climbers’ accident. The climbing centre appealed, arguing that it wasn’t 25% responsible for the accident. This appeal was a success and at the appeal the judge said that:
“Adults who chose to engage in physical activities which obviously give rise to a degree of unavoidable risk may find that they have no means of recompense if the risk materialises so that they are injured.”
If you have been injured whilst undertaking a sporting activity and you think someone else was to blame, call Camps Solicitors today for expert legal advice that could make all the difference to your claim. Even if you think your accident sounds similar to this rock climbing compensation claim, it may still be worth calling Camps as our solicitors have the expert knowledge and years of experience that means we can boost success rates in our claims in excess of 90%.
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