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Sporting Injuries

These claims are subject to the Civil Liability Act 2003 and Personal Injuries Proceedings Act 2002.

Injuries which occur as a result of sporting activity may arise either from the action of other competitors, inadequate control or management of the activity or defective equipment.

The convenor of the activity and all participants each owe one another duties to take reasonable care. As is the case in other situations, the right to claim damages for injury depends on the circumstances and the basic three elements must be proved:-

  • extent of duty owed
  • breach of duty
  • injury complained of has been caused by that breach.

By participating in a sport you are considered to have accepted the inherent risks of the activity as well as common infringements of the rules of the sport.

Injury by other participant

Any bodily contact to which you have not impliedly consented by your participation in the activity, is an assault in respect of which you have an entitlement to damages to the extent of any resulting injury. A legal tackle in a rugby match which results in a broken limb will not be actionable but an injury from a spear tackle where you are dumped heavily on your head and neck probably would be actionable in damages.

Supervision

A convenor of the activity eg a school, club, referee or coach owe a duty to ensure that the activity will be conducted in as reasonably a safe manner as possible. Hence they will be liable for injuries resulting from:-

  • in the case of school team activities, mixing players of inappropriate builds or weights
  • playing persons of inappropriate builds in hazardous positions eg persons with long skinny necks and thin shoulders in a position of hooker
  • failing to prevent persons of known violent disposition from continuing in participation in the activity.

where the particular breach can be proven to be the cause of the particular injury complained of.

Defective equipment

The convenor of the activity may owe a duty to ensure that equipment is provided to minimise the risk of injury and so does not expose participants to injury which could have been prevented had the safety equipment been provided.

Accordingly, a gymnasium will be liable for failing to provide adequate foam matting for persons on which to land when engaged in ring or bar gymnastics where an injury occurs from a fall and it is proven that such injury would not have occurred had the matting been supplied and adequately positioned.

Spectators

Persons injured as spectators at sporting events have similar rights as those injured in other public areas.

See also: Public areas

In all sporting injury cases the convenor may have a complete defence if you have entered into an agreement releasing them from any liability. Such a release, waiver or discharge is often contained in a sign-on form or sporting club membership application. Your lawyer will need to carefully examine the terms of those documents to be able to provide you with advice as to whether or not the waiver constitutes a defence.