Trampoline Liabilities

By Amy E. Feldman

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Next to piñatas, nothing is better fodder for Americas Funniest Home Videos like a trampoline. But the lawsuits that trampolines spur are no laughing matter.

A 94-year-old man in Minnetonka, Minnesota made headlines when he revealed that he is training on the trampoline to learn how to fall properly. Hm. Interesting, in a head scratching kind of way. But grandpa's not the only one who likes trampolines.
Lawyers love them.

What's your legal liability if others come over to jump? When someone sues a trampoline owner for injuries sustained, the owner will be judged on the precautions he took to prevent injuries. So leaving a trampoline on your yard when you know neighborhood kids will jump on it may not be considered reasonably cautious. But precautions like keeping a safety net around the trampoline in a fenced-in yard and warning those who jump - and their parents, or in some cases, their grandkids - of the risk of injury not only prevents successful lawsuits but actually may prevent injury.