Fort Worth Ski & Snowboard Accident Lawyers

Skiing & Snowboarding safety tips

As Michael Schumacher’s tragic accident illustrates, skiing and snowboarding accidents can lead to truly tragic consequences. It is important to remember that accidents like these are not mere statistics and that they can happen to anyone. If you or your family plan on skiing or snowboarding, be sure to take all safety precautions.

Your Responsibility Code

To minimize the risk of ski injuries and snowboard injuries, the NSAA recommends following Your Responsibility Code. Introduced in the 1960s as snow sports began increasing in popularity in the United States, the Code consists of seven points.

1. Always stay in control, and be able to stop or avoid other people or objects.

2. People ahead of you have the right of way. It is your responsibility to avoid them.

3. You must not stop where you obstruct a trail, or are not visible from above.

4. Whenever starting downhill or merging into a trail, look uphill and yield to others.

5. Always use devices to help prevent runaway equipment.

6. Observe all posted signs and warnings. Keep off closed trails and out of closed areas.

7. Prior to using any lift, you must have the knowledge and ability to load, ride, and unload safely.

Additionally, the NSAA emphasizes the importance of remaining aware of your surroundings. Winter slopes are often unpredictable environments.

Things to watch out for include adverse weather conditions, changing snow conditions (for example, ice and avalanches), and machinery working on the hill. Notably, the Code also takes time to highlight the considerable dangers associated with ski lift accidents.

Wear a helmet

Wearing a helmet while skiing or snowboarding is normally left up to individual choice. That said, the importance of wearing a helmet is difficult to overstate. For example, had Michael Schumacher not been wearing a helmet at the time of his accident, he would likely not be alive today; his is but one example.

The importance of wearing helmets while skiing and snowboarding has become more and more accepted over the past two decades. The NSAA reported increased helmet usage every year for 18 consecutive years. By the 2019/2020 season, 86% of skiers and snowboarders in the United States wore helmets. By contrast, in the 2002/03 season, only 25% of skiers and snowboarders reported wearing helmets.

Helmet usage is strongly correlated with age. Children aged 9 and under are the most likely to wear helmets, with 100% wearing helmets in the 2019/2020 season. Similarly, 96% of individuals aged 17 years and younger wore helmets.

By contrast, of individuals between the ages of 18–25, around 82% wore helmets in the same season. Though not ideal, this is a huge improvement from the 2003/03 season, in which only 18% of individuals aged 18–24 and only 25% of individuals between aged 24–35 reported wearing helmets.

Read more: Weinstein, Sarah, et al. “Common Skiing and Snowboarding Injuries.” Current Sports Medicine Reports, vol. 18, no. 1, Nov. 2019, pp. 393–400.

legal route to compensation

If you were injured in a ski accident or snowboard accident, you may be entitled to compensation. This section will discuss the most common route toward securing compensation, as well as a few potential obstacles. Our personal injury lawyers are a phone call away to explain in greater depth.

1. Negligence

Negligence is the primary route to securing compensation. This is easily the most common cause of action in all personal injury cases. Arguing negligence requires proving four elements; a plaintiff’s case fails if they fail to prove any element.

Duty: Defendant owed plaintiff a duty to use reasonable care.

Breach: Defendant breached their duty.

Harm: Plaintiff suffered a harm.

Causation: Defendant’s breach of duty caused plaintiff’s harm.

The underlying premise of this cause of action is simple. It simply asserts that we all have a duty to exercise a certain threshold of precaution in our activities to avoid putting other people in danger. That threshold is measured by considering what a “reasonable person” would have done in the same situation.

Of course, “reasonableness” is a very open-ended concept and subject to contextualized interpretation. Successfully arguing that you are entitled to compensation because someone failed to take reasonable precaution requires the skill of an experienced attorney.

A negligence claim can be brought against numerous parties. Obvious candidates include (1) other skiers and snowboarders who failed to use reasonable care on the slopes and (2) ski resorts who unreasonably failed to keep conditions safe on the slopes.

2. “Assumption of the Risk”

Defendants in the skiing and snowboarding context often have a powerful defense at their disposal. This defense is known as “assumption of the risk.”

This concept is straightforward. It comes up in situations where an injured plaintiff knew or should have known that the activity they engaged in—for example, skiing and snowboarding—was “inherently dangerous.” Defendants can use this as an excuse to pass culpability back to injured plaintiffs.

In some jurisdictions, this notion of “inherent dangerousness” associated with skiing and snowboarding has been codified in statutes. Most notably, Colorado—by far one of the most popular ski and snowboarding destinations in the United States—passed the Colorado Ski Safety Act in 1979. “Realizing the dangers that inhere in the sport of skiing, regardless of any and all reasonable safety measures that can be employed,” the law presumes by default that skiers accept the risk and legal responsibility associated with the “inherent dangers and risks of skiing.”

However, the Colorado law preserves two caveats. First, the risk of skier-to-skier collision is not deemed inherent and can be avoided through safe practices. Second, though each skier has a duty to operate safely, the law emphasizes that skiers going downhill shoulder the primary duty to avoid collision.

Further, many jurisdictions employ another concept known as “comparative negligence.” This means that in cases where a plaintiff’s actions partially contributed to their accident, their compensation is reduced accordingly.

For example, imagine that a defendant skier collided with a plaintiff. Damages are determined to be $1 million; however, the plaintiff is determined to have contributed 30% to the accident. In a jurisdiction that has adopted comparative negligence, the plaintiff in this case could only recover $700,000.

Read more: Determining Fault in Skier-Versus-Skier Accidents

3. Statute of Limitations

In any personal injury case, it is very important to be aware of the governing statute of limitations, which simply refers to a law setting a deadline after which you can no longer bring your case. Because each state sets its own statute of limitations, there is some variation across jurisdictions. Most states set the deadline at 2–3 years after the date of your accident.

It is imperative that you bring your case before the deadline passes. Once time runs out, the deadline acts as a virtually absolute bar against your case. Therefore, do not hesitate to contact a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible; time is of the essence.

OUR Fort Worth ski and snowboard accident lawyers CAN HELP

Skiing and snowboarding are extremely popular. The appeal of these winter sports is undeniable. However, they are also accompanied by significant risk of injury. When accidents occur, victims are often left struggling to secure financial compensation when they should instead be focused on their physical recovery.

Our injury attorneys are here to help. So if you have wondered, “Is there an affordable attorney or personal injury lawyer near me?” look no further.

At Zinda Law Group, we believe every personal injury victim deserves excellent legal representation. Our injury attorneys pride themselves in providing that representation.

If you or a loved one was injured in a ski accident or snowboard accident, call Zinda Law Group at (800) 863-5312 for a 100% free case evaluation with one of our Fort Worth ski accident lawyers. Our clients pay nothing unless we win their case. That is our No Win, No Fee Guarantee.

Meetings with attorneys are available by appointment only.