People who engage in snow tubing as a sport or reaction must be fully aware of the actual risks of tubing and the injuries they might sustain. All skiing resorts in the state of Colorado require customers to sign a negligence liability waiver before they can get lift tickets or resort passes.
As a customer, you may feel wary or anxious signing this waiver, as it sends the message that the resort has immunity no matter what happens to you. However, Colorado ski responsibility statutes are not all black and white. Hence, it is still possible to sue if you experience a snow tubing injury, although everything is on a case-to-case basis. Because the legality and technicality behind these Skiing Responsibility Statutes are complicated, it's important to hire an experienced attorney to ensure you have a valid lawsuit.
The Colorado Ski Safety Act is a Skiing Responsibility Statute that grants ski area operators immunity from liability due to the inherent risks in skiing and other relevant activities. To summarize, this means that the state of Colorado recognizes that skiing is a dangerous sport, and ski area owners should not be held liable for any injuries that result as a natural by-product of such dangerous activities. This is called the assumption of risk, and it means that skiers are well-aware of the inherent risks of skiing and have chosen to proceed anyway.
While this skiing responsibility statute may seem biased towards ski resort owners and operators, it is actually beneficial for both business owners and skiers. The skiing responsibility act gives business owners safety guidelines they should follow to ensure that the only inherent risks of injury are those associated with skiing. The law assumes that ski operators will observe the standard of care when dealing with their customers.
However, the law does not grant them immunity from liability for injuries arising from the operator's negligence and reckless action. Lack of proper safety guidelines, not putting up warning signs, and poor maintenance of ski lifts are just some violations that can still render them liable for any injuries sustained. Even if you signed a liability waiver, the Colorado federal courts will deem it null and void because actions that violate the ski responsibility act will not excuse the defendant from liability.
For example, if you fell and fractured your arm because there were no signs warning you of a steep and sharp downslope on the path you were walking on, you can still sue the owners of the resort because your injury had nothing to do with the common inherent risks of injury associated with skiing.
The ski responsibility statute encompasses all skiing-related activity, or activities carried out on a ski slope or trail. This includes the following devices:
As stated in the previous paragraphs, the immunity granted to ski resort owners is not all-inclusive. The law does not excuse them from liability for negligence or reckless actions. There are two degrees of negligence- ordinary negligence and gross negligence. Ordinary negligence pertains to mistakes made out of carelessness, while gross negligence denotes intentionally reckless behavior. Colorado laws do not protect gross negligence, even when signed waivers of liability are involved. Ordinary negligence, on the other hand, are largely gray areas and are looked into on a case-to-case basis.
If you got injured due to a snow tubing accident or even a snowboarding accident, the ski operator is not exempt from liability for negligence in the following scenarios:
Failure To Put Up Proper Notice and Signage
All ski resort owners must implement a sign system in their place of business. All dangerous areas must be sealed with appropriate warning signs. Paths meant for customer use should be clearly marked and closed or unavailable facilities should also be marked as such. The business should also put up posters of the area's safety guidelines and emergency protocols.
Ski slope rules and safety guidelines must be printed on the back of the snow tubing ticket. Lift and tramways must have information regarding the risks of boarding and disembarking.
The ski responsibility act is very particular when it comes to signage requirements. The beginner slope should be marked by a green circle with the word "easiest". The hardest icy slopes should have black diamond marking and the word "hardest". All warning signs should have the word "warning" written in big, bold, red letters. The goal is to introduce the proper precaution informing snowbirds of the risk of harm and the risk of injuries that are associated with these activities. Failure to properly notify patrons will not excuse a party from liability and could leave the owner facing tort liability.
It is also the duty of resort owners to warn customers of any future weather conditions such as risks of snow or fog, that may provide dangerous conditions for skiing. Failure to inform customers of the risks of snow is considered improper conduct. Some owners may even try to introduce contracts with liability release language included to cover them in case of ski or snowboard accidents.
Poorly Maintained Skiing Areas and Devices
Tubing hill areas, usually have surfaces groomed using machines. This practice is often observed in family tubing slopes and other areas that allow children. This ensures that the snow tuber can slide down the tubing hill easily without bumping into rocks or other obstructions. If you sustained serious injuries because your snow tube veered out of control after hitting a sharp rock, you can still file a lawsuit against the resort.
The same is true for devices that are poorly maintained. Although some people bring their own gear, a lot of people choose to rent snow tubes. If the property owner fails to properly maintain their equipment and a skier suffers injuries because of problems in the snowmobile engine or snow tube chute, the resort operator is to blame.
Another type of lawsuit that can arise from a snow tubing accident is a personal injury lawsuit against another person in the ski area. Because the liability waiver only protects the operators of ski areas, other skiers are not immune from liability for injuries inflicted on other customers of the ski area, intentional or otherwise.
According to most liability waivers, although the risk of collision is sometimes unavoidable, it is the snow tuber's responsibility to avoid colliding with other people to the best of their ability. Suing another skier for your injuries will proceed in the same manner as other personal injury cases. As the victim, you need to prove that your injuries were caused by the other party, and therefore you can file a claim against the other person's insurance policies.
If the accident was caused by the other person's ordinary negligence, you can hire an attorney to start negotiations with the other party. However, it is also possible that more than one party will be involved. For example, if the other party crashed into you because of a defective rental snow tube, this may free the other party from negligence liability. The ski area operator can be held liable if it is proven that the defective snow tube is the direct cause of the accident.. Additionally, if the other person involved is an employee of the resort operator, the operator is responsible under the rules of vicarious liability.
Although the law still allows legal action to be taken against ski area operators, your case will get thrown out in the following situations:
Ski accidents fall into the scope of personal injury and therefore the damages awarded to the victim are similar to other personal injury cases. As the victim of a skiing accident, you are entitled to receive economic and non-economic damages..
Economic damages refer to compensation given to offset quantifiable financial losses. This includes:
Non-economic damages refer to compensation for losses that cannot be quantified easily. This includes:
Because skiing accidents have a lot of nuances, it's difficult to determine whether or not you have a valid case without proper legal knowledge. Personal injury lawyers will make full use of their knowledge of Skiing Responsibility Statutes to ascertain whether or not your case has any merit.. They will then review the incident report with reasonable care, ask you for a form release for medical records while taking note of any type of injury, review for negligent conduct, and interview witnesses to check for evidence of ordinary negligence or reckless action.
If you are the victim of someone else's negligence or any form of negligence, you don't need to worry about long recovery times and expensive treatment. Your lawyer will compile solid evidence to ensure the other party is held liable for their actions and that you receive the fair compensation you deserve. Even with the risks of skiing being a part of public policy, we provide a careful review of each case citing improper conduct and procuring the compensation deserved. Call the expert team at Firouzbakth Law for your free consultation.
