Take Care to Prevent Swimming Pool Injuries This Summer
The weather has finally begun heating up in Southern California, and many of us have begun seeking refuge in the swimming pools in our own backyards or those of friends. While backyard pools can provide a lot of fun for family and guests, they can also present a serious hazard to children, and a source of financial liability for homeowners. Read on to learn more about swimming pool accidents.
Swimming pool drownings are responsible for a surprising number of child deaths each year in the U.S. Drowning is the leading cause of death for children between the ages of 1 and 4, outside of birth injuries, and is the fifth leading cause of unintentional injury death for people of all ages. According to the Centers for Disease Control, California has one of the nine highest statewide swimming pool drowning death rates in the US. Swimming pool injuries can be serious even when they aren’t fatal. For every child under 15 killed in a swimming pool drowning accident, ten more require treatment in an emergency room for their submersion injuries. Those injured in submersion accidents can incur serious brain damage, learning disabilities, memory problems, and other lasting disabilities.
California imposes a number of regulations on backyard pools at the state level, including a requirement that pools be entirely surrounded by a wall or a fence that is at least four feet tall, with a gate that self-latches and that small children cannot reach. However, local county and city governments in your area may impose additional requirements. If you own a home with a swimming pool, make sure you understand the laws governing pool safety. Failure to comply with these laws could result in injury to guests or to your own family members, and could even result in a denial of coverage by your homeowner’s insurance carrier for injury-related claims. Swimming pools are considered “attractive nuisances,” a term reserved for highly-dangerous and appealing features that often draw in children. Even when the person injured by an attractive nuisance is a trespasser, you could still face liability for their injuries.
If you or a loved one has been injured in a swimming pool accident on another homeowner’s property in California, seek the compensation you need to care for those injuries and provide future care by contacting the Los Angeles personal injury attorneys at Magaña, Cathcart & McCarthy for a consultation on your claims, at 310-553-6630.
