Personal injury at sporting events

NASCAR fans throughout the country were excited to watch one of the sport's biggest races of the year which took place this past weekend. The Coke Zero 400 was the main event last weekend, but there are other races surrounding that event that draw many to the area. One of those events was a second-tier race that took place at the Daytona International Speedway, the evening before.

Unfortunately an accident on the track during the race sent parts of the race cars involved flying into the stands. Approximately thirty spectators were hurt in the unexpected accident, suffering multiple and various injuries. Some of those individuals may look into pursing legal action against NASCAR, which owns the track, by way of a personal injury lawsuit.

The theory behind the possible lawsuit would likely be gross negligence. More specifically, that the fence separating the spectator stands from the racetrack was not safe enough. Apparently the fence may have not been adequate to protect specktators and may have had holes in that fence.

Not everyone believes that such a case would be easy to achieve a positive result in. This is because of the liability waivers that are standard on tickets for many sporting events. Some view it as a contract under which the spectator assumes risk for any injuries that could be suffered at the event.

Some attorneys do not believe that the waiver would ultimately hold up however. One attorney who represents some of those injured indicated that while it is possible that someone could be injured at a car race, most would not expect the type of injury would be due to a heavy piece of car flying into them. Those injured are hopeful that in an effort to appease its fans, NASCAR will settle with them for their serious injuries without a trial.

What do you think? Do you feel that spectators of events should assume the risk for any injuries that could occur? If you have questions about an injury you sustained as a sporting event, call the Pittsburgh area personal injury law firm at Dugan & Associates today for a free consultation at 888-99-DUGAN.