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Click For Your Free ConsulationPosted in Personal Injury on November 20, 2024
Ice skating is one of the top winter activities in New York. However, with sharp blades, high-traffic rinks, and different skill levels at play, the average New York ice skating arena is full of potentially injurious situations.
Participants and ice skating companies must exercise reasonable care while ice skating or providing ice skating services. Failure to do so can lead to liability.
There are two principal types of injuries that arise from ice skating: overuse or improper use injury and injury by trauma. Some of the most common types of injuries involved with ice skating come about due to overuse or improper use of the body. Overuse occurs when a body part is used far more often than it has been, resulting in injury.
Although overuse injuries are more common with ice skater athletes, recreational skaters may also suffer an accident of this type. However, recreational skaters are more likely to experience improper use injuries caused by the use of improper technique or other issues while ice skating.
Bone breaks and fractures through overuse are common among frequent ice skaters. Bones can only take so much use and force. Proper training and warm-up can prevent these types of injuries from occurring.
Sprains and tears are also quite common, especially around the ankle area. The forces the feet and ankles must manage and absorb can be extensive with ice skating activities. Faulty equipment may also have much to do with a sprain or tear.
Muscle strain is perhaps one of the most common injuries. Overexertion, aggressive training, and aggressive play commonly lead to muscle strain as muscles are pushed beyond their limit.
Ultimately, some amount of muscle strain should be expected in activities such as ice skating. However, some cases need not happen and are caused by practices and play that are simply too aggressive.
Tendon injuries are like muscle injuries in that they are often caused by too much strain or force. One of the more common tendons harmed in these types of incidents is the Achilles heel. In serious cases of injury to the Achilles heel, injured parties need substantial time off work and medical attention, including physical rehab.
Traumatic injuries occur when a person is subjected to one or more types of trauma, such as blunt-force and piercing traumas.
Depending on the circumstances of the accident, a person could experience serious traumatic injuries while skating, such as:
Trauma during ice skating often occurs when two or more ice skaters collide with one another or with a stationary object. Depending on the circumstances, one or more skaters may be held liable when a collision occurs. If the plaintiff was negligent, they may still seek compensation but may see their award reduced based on their percentage of negligence.
Ice skating accidents are not the only type of accidents that can and have occurred at Rockefeller Center. Visitors might also suffer other types of common accidents that are typically the result of general negligence or unlawful acts.
Slip-and-fall accidents, also known as slip, trip, and fall accidents, are a common occurrence when walkways, entrances, exits, and stairs are defective in some way, such as:
Rockefeller Center must continually work to ensure that its passageways, entrances, and exits are reasonably safe for the public. When an injury occurs due to negligence, victims may pursue damages for their losses.
Accidents at the Rockefeller Center may also occur due to dangerously defective products. For example, if a pair of ice skates has been improperly designed or manufactured, it might cause a patron to suffer an injury on the ice. When a person is harmed in this manner, they may have a product liability case against the party who sold them or provided them with the skates.
Defective products other than skates might also cause accidents and injury, such as a defective Zamboni machine. Zamboni machines, or ice resurfacers, are essential pieces of equipment to keep the ice skating surface suitable for skaters. Machine defects can lead to unsafe operation of the Zamboni and subsequent accidents and injuries.
Whatever the cause of an accident at the Rockefeller Center, accident victims need to know that they may have the right to pursue compensation. Meeting with an experienced personal injury lawyer is the first step in getting the damages they deserve.
Ice skaters are typically required to sign waivers before they can ice skate at Rockefeller Center or any other ice rink in the state. The waiver releases the Center from liability for injuries occasioned during ice skating. However, accidents arising out of general negligence are typically not addressed in these waivers.
In other words, although a person may sign an ice skating waiver, the scope of the waiver will likely not include general negligent actions, such as:
Additionally, waivers do not apply to the negligent acts of others. For example, if an ice skater is negligent and causes injury to another ice skater, the waiver will not protect the negligent skater.
Waivers also do not protect against liability from defective products. If a faulty ice skate causes an accident, the waiver signed by the skater will not protect the ice skate maker from liability.
With the year’s biggest holidays on the horizon, visitors and residents of New York do well to keep safety in mind. Fun, seasonal activities can turn dangerous rather quickly. Although it is impossible to prevent every single accident in the state, reasonable care can prevent most of them.
If you need legal assistance, contact the New York City personal injury lawyers at Law Offices of Jay S. Knispel Personal Injury Lawyers at your nearest location to schedule a free consultation.
We have two convenient locations in New York:
Law Offices of Jay S. Knispel Personal Injury Lawyers – New York City Office
450 7th Ave #1605
New York, NY 10123
(212) 564-2800
Law Offices of Jay S. Knispel Personal Injury Lawyers – Brooklyn Office
26 Court St Suite 2511
Brooklyn, NY 11242
(718) 802-1600