Apartment Complex Child Drowning Accidents: The Legal Rights of Parents
While pools present a refreshing opportunity to cool down during the summer heat, they can also pose a danger if they are not properly maintained and monitored. Apartment complex tenants deserve to be able to experience the amenities of their pool without worry, but unfortunately, this is not always the case. When apartment pools are neglected even by the smallest amount, the chances of a devastating accident increase. Children make up 87% of the total amount of drowning deaths in the U.S., which ranks them in the quarter percentile of these fatalities. Even in the case of a non-fatal drowning incident, the repercussions can leave children with serious or lifelong injuries. Merely 3 minutes without oxygen can be detrimental to a person’s brain and can result in cognitive and physical impairments.
Parents have the right to be compensated for this kind of devastating loss if the apartment complex is found liable for their child’s drowning accident. The team at Sneed and Mitchell handles child wrongful death claim across the United States and is dedicated to helping families pursue justice and punitive damages for the loss of their loved ones in aquatic accidents. Call (866-434-0014) for a free and private case consultation with one of our child drowning accident lawyers.
How do Apartment Swimming Pool Accidents Happen?
Answer: Improper safety precautions and failure to maintain the pool’s infrastructure are the most common reasons apartment swimming pool accidents occur. The lack of preventative steps by apartment complexes, even by a small amount, can result in serious or fatal injuries, especially for children.
Poor Infrastructure
An unguarded pool without a surrounding gate or fence can easily attract the eye of a wandering child. While parents are responsible for watching their children, it’s important to note that the owner of a public swimming pool is also responsible for ensuring their pool is enclosed to prevent unapproved access from getting in and can be held accountable for not doing so. That being said, even if gates or fences are established, if locks are not working or a fence picket is missing, access to the pool becomes that much easier.
Malfunctioning Pool Equipment
There are certain guidelines set by the Texas Department of State Health Services that aim to ensure public pools are safe to use. Pool equipment such as pipes, slides, diving boards, drains, and water quality are all required to be tested and inspected thoroughly before public use. However, sometimes apartment complexes overlook or disregard certain faulty or broken equipment, which can threaten the safety of their tenants. Some examples of faulty pool equipment include missing drain covers, chipped or sharp pool bottoms, uneven water slide surfaces, and improper piping.
Lack of Water Safety Training
Some apartment complexes do not have any lifeguards on-site to watch the pool. Even supervised by an adult, a child can still drown without the help of someone who has proper water safety and CPR training. Drownings can still happen with lifeguard supervision, especially if the lifeguard is not paying attention or has not received proper water safety training for rescue purposes. If lifeguards have allowed the pool to become overcrowded, this can also cause incidents to be difficult to see due to the excessive amount of people. A small child’s head slipping under the water can easily go unseen in a crowd of adults.
Liability for Child Swimming Pool Accidents
If a child swimming pool accident happens at an apartment complex pool, it is possible that the property owners can be held responsible if they are found guilty of contributing to the cause of the accident. One way a business can be held accountable for an accident like this is if they have broken the Attractive Nuisance Doctrine. This law is put in place to ensure that businesses provide a safe environment that does not contain attractions that children would likely seek out. Because pools are considered an attraction to children who are incapable of understanding the repercussions of their actions, Texas observes this as a hazard that can be investigated if believed to be the cause of the accident.
Another law established for safety precautions is the premises liability law which asks businesses to ensure their property is surrounded by a fence or is at least inaccessible to those that need to be kept out. However, establishing a perimeter is not always enough to keep uninvited guests away. Businesses must also consistently test their latches, locks, and gate systems to ensure they are all properly functioning. For example, if a pool is found to have faulty latch mechanisms or no fence at all to keep people out during in-operational hours, and a child jumps in the pool and drowns, this could be considered both a premises liability and an attractive nuisance. Not only was the pool easily accessible to the public without any restrictions on the premises, but the pool was alluring to the child who drowned in it.
The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act is another law put in place that lists the requirements and regulations regarding the drainage system in a swimming pool. If a parent believes not enough drains were installed in a pool that their child had an accident in, or believes the drains were malfunctioning, they should contact a lawyer at (866-434-0014) for assistance in investigating this claim.
Types of Drowning Accident Compensation
Parents have the right to be compensated if their child has been physically injured, has developed cognitive issues, or has passed away due to a swimming pool accident. Even if a child has survived a drowning, the damage from an extended time without oxygen or from water getting into the lungs can be irreversible and sometimes last a lifetime. Mild damages can still be traumatic for a child and can require the need for expensive medical operations. There are different forms of compensation that parents can receive depending on the severity and cause of the accident.
Pain & Suffering
Parents can receive a pain and suffering settlement if their child is left with disabilities or issues that affect the quality of their life after an accident. A few examples of these lasting issues are nerve damage, broken bones, lingering pain, and organ damage. Emotional wounds like PTSD or depression after a traumatic injury can also be compensated for.
Medical Bills
Many drowning incidents require the help of medical professionals to revive, relocate, and rehabilitate the victim. Ambulatory services and surgical procedures can add up to be expensive and burdensome for parents who experience a sudden tragedy such as this. If the damages are long-lasting, sometimes the child will need years' worth of rehabilitation and in some cases require a lifelong caretaker. Parents have the right to receive compensation for these unexpected and pricey medical bills if the owner of the pool is found to be at fault for the accident.
Lost Income
Oftentimes, parents must step away from their jobs for a certain period of time to provide care for their children. Sometimes the care a child needs requires months or even years of a parent's time, resulting in an absorbent amount of income lost. This can be accounted for when determining compensation for a drowning accident.
Actions Parents Can Take to Prevent Drowning
While there are policies and regulations set to ensure apartment pools are safe, they are not always strictly followed and are sometimes even disregarded. These are several proactive steps a parent can take to prevent a tragedy like drowning from happening.
Double Checking Pool Accessibility: A parent can visit their apartment’s pool to make sure it is fenced in, properly locked, and undamaged. Any issues seen can be reported to the pool owner for review and repair.
Learning State Pool Regulations: Understanding the safety regulations that pools are required to have can greatly benefit a parent who is investigating the safety of their apartment complex pool. For example, all local pools are required to have 4ft automatic-lock gates to prevent unapproved access from getting in.
Enrolling a Child in Swimming Lessons: A child who has taken swimming lessons is far less likely to be compromised by water than a child who hasn’t. Even with lifeguards on duty, all it takes is a few seconds of unsupervised attention on a child in the water for them to drown.
Double Checking Pool Safety: Parents can check in with the lifeguards or the pool owners to make sure they have the proper emergency equipment and procedure protocols put in place. Texas pools must have pool alarms, emergency dial tools, and rescue equipment such as ropes and ring buoys on hand at all times.
How An Attorney Can Help
An attorney can help those who have experienced a child swimming pool accident determine if they are owed compensation, help them understand their rights, and provide helpful insight on the next steps to take. A thorough investigation will take place to collect evidence to use against the pool owners believed to be responsible for the accident. The legal professional compile a list of reports from health professionals, law enforcement officers, and aquatic specialists to use as evidence to support the claim. All accounts of pool maintenance, water safety training, the names and schedules of the lifeguards on duty, and every pool inspection will also be pulled from the pool’s records.
After retaining legal counsel, a petition can be filed that allows your representative to file interrogatives and other Discovery requests to determine if similar accidents occurred in the past and gain deposition testimonies from those who witnessed them. Oftentimes, apartment complex owners and pool companies will have general liability insurance that helps defendants pay for the monetary consequences of their actions. Your attorney will request insurance policy verifications and other related documents to help determine what type of coverages the Defendant has in place. The attorney will prepare the care for trial in civil court to have the case determined by a jury. If the case doesn't settle, it will be heard in court and adjudicated.
Contact A Child Drowning Accident Lawyer
If someone you love has experienced a pool accident tragedy, contact child injury attorney Brit Mitchell at (866) 434-0014. Attorney Mitchell helps families obtain justice against negligent companies and pool operators in Texas and nationally. During your free consultation we will investigate what occurred and inform your family of your legal rights.
In Texas child drowning cases, justice can only be obtained from relentless negotiations or a hotly-contested trial. This is why you should only entrust an attorney familiar with handling wrongful death involving children and premises liability cases. Attorney Mitchell and her trial attorneys know how to prevent your child and other family members from being blamed for the resulting tragedy. You can trust our experience.
If you believe you have a wrongful death claim, call Sneed & Mitchell LLP today. From our offices in Houston, Dallas, Austin, and San Antonio, we assist Statewide and have ongoing cases across the United States, including in California, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. We are ready to fight for your child.