Top Tips for Making a Gym Accident Claim

You might like to make a gym accident claim if you’ve experienced an injury due to the gym’s negligence. In this guide, learn if you have a potential claim for a gym accident payout. 

gym accident claim

A guide to making a gym accident claim

To claim compensation, you must be able to prove you were owed a duty of care. In addition, you must be able to prove it was breached and this breach was what caused your injuries. We examine what this means while looking at examples of injuries that could occur in a gym. Also, we explore how gym accidents could happen. 

We examine examples of potential compensation for injuries that could occur in a gym or fitness centre. In addition, we provide examples of what costs you could recover as part of your claim. 

If you decided to sue the gym for your injuries, you might find the process easier with a No Win No Fee solicitor. We look at what it really means to hire legal representation under a No Win No Fee arrangement. 

Our advisors are waiting to hear from you:

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Choose A Section

  1. Guidance On A Gym Accident Claim
  2. Determining Compensation For Your Gym Accident
  3. Understanding A Gym Accident Claim
  4. How Do Accidents At Gyms Happen?
  5. What Happens If I Use A No Win No Fee Lawyer?
  6. More Information On A Gym Accident Claim

Guidance On A Gym Accident Claim

If you’ve experienced an injury at a gym, you might be wondering how to claim accident compensation. Firstly, you will need to prove you were owed a duty of care. For a gym accident, you are owed a duty of care under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. The duty of care must have been breached. This breach must have caused you an injury if you would like to claim for an accident at a gym. We examine the duty of care in more detail later on in this article. 

Contact our advisors to discuss how negligence resulted in your injuries.  

How Many Years After An Accident Can I Claim? 

Personal injury claims have a typical time limit of three years to start a claim under the Limitation Act 1980. This is from the date your injury becomes apparent or you gain knowledge that negligence at least contributed to your injuries. 

Certain exceptions to the time limit apply. If you are under the age of 18 when the injury occurs, you have three years from your 18th birthday to begin your claim. However, a litigation friend could claim on your behalf before your 18th birthday. 

You may lack the mental capacity to start your gym accident claim. If so, you could have three years to begin your claim from the date of your recovery. Alternatively, a litigation friend can claim on your behalf if you lack mental capacity. 

Our advisors could help you begin your claim before the personal injury claims time limit runs out. 

Determining Compensation For Your Gym Accident

Your gym accident claim could come with two heads: general damages and special damages. Further details about each head can be found below. 

You might be invited to an independent medical assessment as part of your injury at a gym claim. This is to help gain a fuller understanding of your injuries and what impact they have on your life. 

General Damages For A Gym Accident Claim

This is the head of your injury at a gym compensation claim that compensates for your physical injuries along with any emotional distress you experienced. Legal professionals use a document called the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to assign value to your injuries. Injuries are listed alongside their possible compensation brackets. 

Examples from the 16th edition published in April 2022 are included below. 

InjuryPotential CompensationNotes
Moderate brain damage (ii)£90,720 to £150,110Moderate to modest intellectual deficit with some epilepsy risk.
Moderate neck injuries (i)£24,990 to £38,490Severe immediate symptoms from an injury such as a fracture or dislocation.
Moderately severe psychiatric injury£19,070 to £54,830Inability to cope with life and relationships but an optimistic prognosis.
Less serious leg injuries (i)£17,960 to £27,760Incomplete recovery from fracture or serious soft tissue injury.
Less severe elbow injury£15,650 to £32,010Function impairment but no significant disability.
Moderate knee injuries (i)£14,840 to £26,190Mild disability from dislocation, torn cartilage or meniscus.
Serious shoulder injuries£12,770 to £19,200Pain in shoulder and neck plus sensory issues down arm from dislocation and damage to lower part of brachial plexus.
Traumatic chest injury (d)£12,590 to £17,960Some permanent tissue damage but no significant long-term lung impairments from a relatively simple injury.
Nose or nasal complex fracture (i)£10,640 to £23,130Permanent damage to airways, nerves and/or tear ducts from serious or multiple fractures.
Minor back injuries (i)£7,890 to £12,510Recovery within 2-5 years without surgery.

Special Damages For A Gym Accident Claim

As part of your settlement for a gym accident, you might be able to claim under the special damages head. Costs because your injuries could be recovered under this head if you supply proof, such as payslips or receipts. 

As part of your gym accident settlement, you could recover:

  • Cosmetic expenses. This could include plastic surgery or cosmetic aids to disguise scarring from your injuries. 
  • Medical expenses. This could include any medical costs not covered by the NHS, such as physiotherapy. 
  • Loss of earnings. You could recover your lost wages. In addition, if you find yourself unable to work due to your injuries, you could claim lost future wages. 

As each injury is different, with different possible special damages, a gym injury compensation calculator is difficult to work out. However, our advisors can provide an estimate of your general damages. They may also be able to provide examples of what costs you could recover. 

Understanding A Gym Accident Claim

As already mentioned, you are owed a duty of care under the Occupiers’ Liability Act. In order to claim for a gym accident, you must be able to prove that the duty of care was breached. Also, you must be able to prove your injuries and it was a breach that caused them.

The occupier of a public place must ensure it is safe for visitors. With a gym, the gym’s owner may conduct equipment checks to ensure the exercise machines are safe for their intended use, for example. You may not be able to claim if you injure yourself through not using the equipment as it was intended to be used. 

Examples of Gym Injuries

  • Broken leg. A broken leg could occur if you trip over clutter, such as a towel in a walkway. 
  • Neck injury. A neck injury could happen due to a broken piece of equipment. For example, a treadmill could be malfunctioning. The gym manager could have been informed and decided to not to implement a course of action, such as putting up an ‘out of order’ sign and instead allow customers to continue to use it. 
  • Nose injury. A broken nose could occur if someone is lifting weights too close to you and they drop them. A gym should provide adequate distance between weight lifting stations. 

Contact our advisors to begin your gym accident claim if you were owed a duty of care and a breach in it caused your injuries. 

 How Do Accidents At Gyms Happen?

You must be able to prove a breach in the duty of care caused your injuries to claim compensation for a gym accident. Steps you take following your injury may strengthen your gym accident claim. 

You could:

  • Seek medical attention. Proof of your injury could come from medical records. 
  • Request CCTV footage. It is within your rights to request footage of yourself. 
  • Note witness contact details. Statements could be given at a later date. 
  • Seek legal advice. No Win No Fee solicitors could ease the claims process. For example, they could help gather evidence or witness statements. 

Causes of Gym Accidents

  • Fall from a height. A climbing rope, for example, could fray and break. 
  • Slips, trips and falls. Gyms, like other public spaces, should keep walkways dry and free of clutter. They could provide a hook to hang towels securely near the machine you are using, for example. 
  • Faulty equipment. Regularly checked exercise machines could prevent injuries. 

Discuss what evidence could strengthen your gym accident claim with our advisors. 

What Happens If I Use A No Win No Fee Lawyer?

A personal injury claim could be expensive with upfront solicitor fees. You could hire a No Win No Fee solicitor instead. No Win No Fee solicitors use a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). 

Under a CFA, you do not pay an upfront solicitor’s fee. Also, a solicitor’s fee isn’t paid at all if the claim is unsuccessful. The solicitor will take a success fee that is capped by law from your award. 

Get Advice On A Gym Accident Claim

Free legal advice is available from our advisors. They could provide you with an estimate of the damages you could claim. In addition, they could discuss what costs you could recover. They can also discuss what evidence you could use to help your claim. Our advisors are available 24 hours per day, 7 days a week. Our panel of personal injury solicitors could look at your claim if it seems eligible. 

Begin your gym accident claim today:

  • Claim online
  • Use the live chat feature
  • Phone us on the number at the top of the page

 More Information On A Gym Accident Claim

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Writer Danielle Ball

Publisher Ruth Vaughn