Balloon Chat
Uncategorized Boards => Off Topic.......... plus Hidden Talents => Topic started by: Graham Lee on June 06, 2008, 07:32:05 PM
If anyone needs a good reliable bouncy castle company with assault course, sumo wrestling etc then get in touch with my daughter Kelly who has been running the business for over five years. The area she covers is around Banstead, Surrey;
http://www.harrysqnc.co.uk (http://www.harrysqnc.co.uk)
Graham Lee
Graham, how does she get over the new law about BC's having to be permanently supervised when in use, bearing in mind past third party claims against BC hirers?
Dave
Well I'm not 100% on this but I believe that the customer signs the waiver form stating that they take full resposibility which they have been doing ever since running the business.
Graham Lee
Anyone running it sensibly will either insist on having the customer sign the waiver (which is what I believe got this particular hire company out of bother and the parent into it) or they will send a member of their own staff along to supervise. I know which one I would do!
In the case that was recently decided the parents in question had signed a waiver to say that they would ensure that it was supervised at all times and that they would not allow somersaults. What happened? The mum turned her back for 5 mins and a boy got kicked in the head by another teenager doing somersaults!!!
Only problem with this is that people may be more wary about hiring castles now as they know they actually do have to supervise the WHOLE time and when you have a million and one things to do at your child's party it is not always possible. Then again there are tons of parents who will not care.
At the end of the day it is not now law that you must supervise children the whole time. It is merely a precedent that if you do not supervise the castle or breach any other hirers rules you will be held liable should anyone get hurt. In the case of hire companies not using waivers then the liability will be passed to them as the parents can say they didn't know / weren't made aware (nothing in writing so you wouldn't have proof) and sue you as a 3rd party.
Many thanks - I just 'wondered'. A parent recently booked me as the waiver had been pointed out to her and she felt with everything going on, she couldn't be sure the BC would be supervised all the time.
Warms the cockles of your heart, doesn't it, to come across a 'responsible' parent.
Cheers,
Dave
Quote from: "YvonneH"At the end of the day it is not now law that you must supervise children the whole time. It is merely a precedent that if you do not supervise the castle or breach any other hirers rules you will be held liable should anyone get hurt. In the case of hire companies not using waivers then the liability will be passed to them as the parents can say they didn't know / weren't made aware (nothing in writing so you wouldn't have proof) and sue you as a 3rd party.
It strikes me that you guys over in the UK are becoming entirely too American in some respects. ;) This whole "suing" and "liability" thing sucks, IMHO.
Cheers,
Kath
I am totally with you and in my life before children I had started to train as a solicitor. I never took it all the way and never actually qualified because I hated the reality of the job and all the people that you get to meet who are after a quick buck. Much happier now but still have insurance for that one parent that thinks they have grounds to sue me ;)
My day job is a legal advisor to the transport industry - there are those who would sue you as soon as look at you but unfortunately the courts always seem to look at the letter of the law and make no allowances for the spirit of the law.
I know of cases that go on for days arguing over the precise meaning of a single word so that someone who is plainly guilty of an offence can wriggle out of it - or even someone who is innocent and is being sued over a trivial matter that should have been sorted out by the application of that rare commodity common sense :twisted: :twisted: GRRRR!!!
:lol: