Suffering a Broken Neck from Diving into a Swimming Pool

Suffering a Broken Neck from Diving into a Swimming Pool

Summertime is in full swing, and many of us consider a day at the pool to be the perfect way to spend a day in the summer sun. Whether at a community pool or a private backyard swimming pool, a moment’s lapse in safety awareness can turn a day of fun into a tragic, life-changing event.

Of all injuries you can sustain at or near the pool, few are more preventable than suffering a broken neck from diving headfirst into shallow water. For this reason, the law requires home pools sold or installed in the U.S. to come with clear warning signs or decals stating that diving into shallow water can cause permanent injury or death.

Who Was Negligent?

If you or a loved one suffered a broken neck from diving, you may be wondering if you should seek legal action. The best way to answer that question is to ask yourself this: Was my injury caused by my own negligence, or was it someone else’s fault?

In other words, were there adequate warnings that the water was too shallow for diving, which you chose to ignore? If that’s the case, you may be out of luck. Of course, most people wouldn’t knowingly cause themselves bodily harm, so it’s likely that you didn’t know—and perhaps had no way of knowing—of the danger of diving where you did.

Failure to Warn of Danger

The law requires property owners to keep their premises safe. This includes homeowners as well as property managers and business owners. Whether your injury happened in a backyard, community pool or water park, your rights are the same.

If a property owner fails to post clearly visible warnings where the pool is too shallow for diving, that negligence can cause others to be harmed. If you or a loved one was harmed by unmarked dangers at the pool, including water too shallow for diving, the law may be able to help.