Be Honest About The State And Condition Of Your Facilities
Exercise equipment and weights, if not in good condition, can cause serious injuries such as broken bones, sprains and other types of injuries
What’s more, equipment can break if not properly maintained, inspected or aged, leading to costly repairs and a reduction in the quality of your members’ experience when their favourite equipment is unusable.
Why does this matter?
Someone could die. You could lose your entire business. Not every issue with your fitness facility will result in these things, but some can. So, why not spend a little time to potentially save yourself a whole lot of money and maybe even someone’s life or limb.
If that doesn’t convince you, know that your insurance company may take it very seriously if someone is injured (or worse), and you are found to have been negligent in managing the risks that are inherent in owning or operating a fitness facility.
The OLA, Liability Waivers, and Gym Membership Agreements: Are these always enforceable?
It can be. Section 3(3) of the OLA specifically authorizes an occupier to “restrict, modify or exclude” the general duty of care. But whether the waiver is effective in a particular case depends on two other issues: whether the language is broad and clear enough to cover the injury claimed by the plaintiff, and whether the occupier sufficiently brought the waiver provision to the plaintiff’s attention before he or she signed.
As to that first issue, a general release won’t apply to injuries caused by negligence (i.e., a failure to follow a reasonable standard of care) unless negligence is explicitly covered by the waiver.
How to mitigate these risks:
- A proper inspection shall be performed by experienced specialist on all of your machines regularly for loose or frayed cables and other damage. Machines may be used by hundreds of members each day, so they can deteriorate and malfunction quickly.
- Preventive maintenance will help you to determine when to decommission machines that are not in perfect working order. It will also help you to purchase quality equipment and parts from a reputable dealer who is able to offer parts and service. They will ensure to keep a repair kit on hand for your gym in order avoid any unexpected shutdown.
- Scheduled maintenance specialist will help to lubricate the pedals of exercise bicycles, elliptical machines and cross trainers regularly. This will help you to avoid any hazardous circumstances including cases with pull-downs, seated crunch machines, machine abductors and abdominal rotation machines.
- Finally, they will help you to keep your gym in a mint condition by thorough cleanings of all machines and equipment on a regular schedule and deep cleaning of equipment before and after each maintenance. This will keep dust away from electronic components and bacteria from breeding on shared equipment like cardio machines, weights and yoga mats. Your staff should also perform thorough cleanings of all machines and equipment on a regular schedule
