What Are the Causes of Swimming Pool Injuries and Deaths?
Swimming and drowning accidents are true tragedies, and unfortunately, they’re more common than anyone would like. According to the CDC, swimming-related accidents are the second most common cause of death in children under 14 years old. Swimming-related incidents include drowning, diving board accidents, or maintenance equipment failures. At Simmons and Fletcher, we have ample experience in dealing with these premises liability claims, many of which involve the following causes:
- Lack of supervision or improper supervision
- Lack of lifeguards or improperly trained lifeguards
- Failure to adequately cover pools and hot tubs
- Inadequate fencing and/or warning signs
- Unmarked drains and other hazards
- Dangerously shallow water
- Diving board accidents (i.e., neck trauma resulting in paralysis or spinal cord injuries)
Unfortunately, most drowning accidents are preventable and are caused by an act of negligence. Swimming pool owners and facilities that operate swimming pools are generally held responsible for any accidents that occur on their premises. In most cases, these property owners and operators have a legal duty of care to provide a reasonably safe environment for swimmers and other users of the pool. If pool safety regulations are ignored or incompetently followed, then the responsible parties may be held liable for any injuries or fatalities.
If you or a loved one has been involved in a drowning or swimming-related accident, it may be helpful to consult with a qualified Houston swimming pool drowning accident lawyer. Our attorneys can give you legal advice on your case at no cost to you. Contact Simmons & Fletcher today for your FREE initial consultation.
How Do You Win in a Swimming Pool Accident Case?
In order to win a personal injury case, you must first prove that the liable party was negligent in protecting you and your loved ones from foreseeable hazards. Proving negligence requires you—and your resourceful Houston drowning accident attorneys—to provide evidence for the following four legal elements:
- The defendant owed you a legal duty of care to follow pool safety regulations and provide a hazard-free environment.
- The defendant breached that duty of care.
- The defendant’s breach and subsequent negligence directly caused your accident and injuries.
- You suffered financial and emotional damages as a result of your injuries.
In order to prove duty of care, negligence, and damages, your personal injury attorney can investigate your case thoroughly and assemble as much evidence as possible. Some of the evidence that your legal team may use include photographs and videos of the accident scene, police reports, eyewitness statements, employer records and reports, medical bills, health records, pay stubs, tax returns, insurance policies, and any messages with your insurer. In order to help compile this evidence for your case, be sure to seek medical attention immediately after your accident, ask for copies of all medical and/or police reports, and keep track of any exchanges between you and the insurer or defendant.
What Kind of Compensation Could I Receive for a Swimming Pool Injury in Houston?
If you or a family member has been injured in a swimming pool accident in Houston, TX, you can seek compensation to recover any economic and non-economic damages that you’ve incurred.
Economic Damages
Economic damages include any financial damages or tangible monetary losses that you’ve suffered as a direct result of your injuries. They have an easily quantifiable dollar value that can be proved with receipts, bills, pay stubs, and other tangible evidence. In most pool accident claims, you can make a case for economic damages like medical bills (past and future), loss of income, diminished earning capacity, property damage, and more.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages involve any intangible losses that you’ve experienced as a direct result of your swimming pool accident. These damages are more difficult to quantify and assign a dollar amount to—however, a resourceful and dedicated Houston pool injury attorney can help to investigate and maximize the amount of damages you may be entitled to.
The most common types of non-economic damages won in personal injury claims include pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, mental anguish, and loss of consortium. For example, if your accident has severely impacted your mental health and even your relationship with your partner, you may be entitled to damages like loss of enjoyment of life and loss of consortium in the untimely death of a loved one.
Wrongful Death Damages
If a loved one or family member has succumbed to injuries following a swimming pool accident, we would like to extend our deepest sympathies to you at this difficult time. Our work involves helping people like you recover and recuperate—emotionally and financially—after a wrongful death accident, and that work includes assessing any damages you can claim in order to help your family and loved ones.
Common wrongful death damages include loss of potential income, loss of household contributions, and loss of consortium (also known as loss of companionship).
Punitive Damages
Punitive damages are not very common, but they may be awarded by a judge or jury in specific situations. Namely, you may be able to recover punitive damages if the jury would like to punish the liable party for a reckless disregard for life. Punitive damages are a form of compensation that doesn’t seek to compensate for evidenced damages—which is the usual case. Instead, they seek to punish liable defendants for grossly negligent or even malicious behavior. A Houston swimming pool accident attorney can help you determine if punitive damages may apply to your case.
What is the amount of compensation you may have for a Drowning Accident in Houston?
After a drowning or swimming-related accident in Houston, the amount of compensation you may be entitled to varies based on the specifics of your case. Every situation is unique, as is every claim and the damages that they involve. The factors that may impact the amount of compensation you can receive include the severity of your injuries, the impact of those injuries on your life, and the costs you’ve incurred as a direct result of your injuries.
Keep in mind that there is a statute of limitations placed on drowning accidents in the state of Texas. Essentially, this means that you have two years from the date of the drowning accident to file a lawsuit, or you will likely forfeit all rights to compensation. This deadline applies to nearly all injured parties in swimming-related accidents, except for minors—in most cases, their statute of limitations does not begin until they turn 18 years old. By getting legal representation from a highly-skilled personal injury attorney, you give yourself the peace of mind of knowing your deadlines are looked out for.
Did You Sustain a Drowning Injury in Houston? Get a Free Consultation!
If you or a loved one has been injured in a swimming pool or drowning accident, we’re here to help. Whether you just want to talk through the details of your case or find out if it’s something that our attorneys can help you with, we’re happy to offer a free consultation at absolutely no cost to you.
Call us at (713) 932-0777 between 8:30 AM and 5:00 PM Mondays through Thursdays or between 8:30 AM and 4:00 PM on Fridays. Or, fill out our online contact form with your information for a quick and easy option. Once your communication has been received, our intake team will determine exactly who you should speak to at our firm, and they’ll work with you to schedule your free case evaluation.
And when we say free, we mean free. During your consultation, an empathetic team member will listen patiently to the details of your case and, if possible, provide you with clear legal routes to compensation. After your discussion, you’ll owe us zero dollars and have no obligation to hire us. If you do hire us, we work on a contingency fee basis—meaning that we only collect a fee from you if we win your case. You pay no attorney fees or court costs to us unless we make a recovery in your case.
FAQ's
What Injuries Can a Near-Drowning Incident Cause?
Near-drowning incidents can cause permanent brain damage and severe emotional trauma. When someone is held underwater for too long, they may suffer from hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy caused by oxygen deprivation to the brain. In addition to this, severe mental and emotional trauma can result from any near-death experience resulting in nightmares, personality changes, anxiety, and other outward manifestations of psychological injury. These effects may be long-lasting or even permanent, requiring treatment, counseling, and care.
Does Homeowner's Insurance Cover Pool Accidents?
When a pool accident happens at a private person’s home, the accident is typically covered by the person’s homeowner’s liability insurance policy if the homeowner’s negligence caused the injury. Personal injury protection or Medpay coverage may provide limited benefits even when there is no negligence. If there is a mortgage on the home, most banks require that the homeowner carry liability coverage on their homeowner’s policy to protect them. If you are unsure about a policy, you should have it reviewed by an attorney to be sure.
Who Pays When I Sue a Person for a Swimming Pool Accident at Their Home?
The majority of the time, it is the homeowner’s insurance policy that pays a settlement or judgment when you bring a claim against a private pool owner for a swimming pool accident at their home. While the facts of every case may be different, most people with swimming pools carry homeowner’s insurance to protect themselves in the event that someone is injured in and around a pool.