Liability Waivers for Shop Rides

[SpokeValley]

We were having a discussion this week about liability with shop rides.

Where I live, we've never been required to sign a liability waiver, but I have when I visit in British Columbia.

Some shop owner buddies in other states tell me that they've completely abandoned shop rides because of liability concerns. Then I hear anecdotal warnings that even if you get a few friends together, that you could be liable. Not that I'm that concerned about my friends, but none the less...

What's your take where you live?

If you're a shop guy, do you require waivers?

[earlfoss]

There is a group from Madison that leaves on Sunday mornings associated with a bike club that has been around forever. This club has non-members sign waivers before the ride. I think it's probably unnecessary but can understand why, especially if it's at the behest of their insurance company.

[josephr]

our club has "sanctioned" rides which are published and we pass around the waiver (members and non-members) and our liability coverage covers non-members as well. Its 2014 --- everyone has a waiver for everything and really its an acknowledement that there's some risk involved. To me a waiver just means that they "get it" ---- not group ride I have has a waiver, but if the ride leader asked for a waiver and then someone refused to sign, I don't think I'd be comfortable riding with that guy/gal.

[biker72]

We have handout route maps with a little disclaimer legaleze written on it.

Each rider is responsible for his or her own safety on our training rides leaving any of the XXXXXX locations. XXXXXX assumes no responsibility for accidents that could happen.

[ptourkin]

The responses are interesting anecdotally, but the actual law will be state specific. Some states have a doctrine of assumption risk based on inherently dangerous activities. In California, this opened the way for public skateparks, for example. Whether a group ride falls under these doctrines would be an issue for attorneys in your jurisdiction.
Also, regardless of this, negligent and intentional acts wouldn't be addressed.

I haven't signed a waiver for shop rides here in California but I do for the velodrome and for brevets (our RBA is a fellow attorney) and special events.

[Aaron O]

The value of a waiver signed the day of a ride is extremely suspect in most states. Not sure how it works in canukistan.

[FastforaSlowGuy]

The responses are interesting anecdotally, but the actual law will be state specific.

^^ This. I've signed plenty of waivers. But like most everything in law, the "value" of that waiver will almost certainly depend on the jurisdiction, what it says, how it's presented and a host of other factors. I'd guess that most clubs and shops haven't investigated the question and instead just copy one from a neighboring shop to make their insurer happy.

[Jaq]

I've only ever seen a waiver for the Rose Bowl ride. Got it off a website (socal cycling, I think) and signed it. Showed up to ride and no one wanted it.

[jr59]

the value of a waiver signed the day of a ride is extremely suspect in most states. Not sure how it works in canukistan.

+1

[carpediemracing]

+1 on relative ineffectiveness of waivers.

In CT they're virtually useless, but as a race promoter in the state I still require racers to sign the regular USAC waiver. If nothing else it's an extra layer of protection.

If I were a shop I'd require waivers.

There's a reason for waivers. You never know when something will happen. A racer unfortunately died at one of my events. (http://espn.go.com/sports/endurance/story/_/id/8795814/cycling-death-family) He basically fell over on his own, at a moderate speed (22-24 mph), and in fact everyone that crashed crashed avoiding him. No one actually hit him during or after his fall. Imagine if that was a shop/club ride? Imagine if he had a family dependent on his income?

Now imagine the rider didn't perish but was 99% gone. Now imagine millions of dollars of medical bills and future care expenses, a family in the background, etc. Lawsuits aren't always personal. If the rider's family/estate can't pay the bills they will need to sue to help cover their expenses, and in fact their insurance company might sue the shop/club's insurance company to recoup costs.

When someone crashed me out at a training race I incurred $8k out of pocket expenses for the crash. I lost two months of work. Recently a teammate fell on a club ride when he overlapped wheels on a left-right combination of turns. I think it was a month ago? He's still in the hospital since he's immobile on one side (all sorts of broken bones, not a paralysis thing). Wheelchair, like I was after my crash, but he's in the hospital for a long time.

In the US medical bills account for a huge amount of bankruptcies. If a business entity engages in an activity that has a reasonable chance of accidents, like group rides, it would be sensible to have participants sign a waiver at the least.

I don't know how it works up north but with socialized medical care, I imagine that a lot of the problems we face here in the US are non-issues. I grew up in Holland, my mom had my two younger siblings there, and it was a real difference there in terms of medical costs, overall life attitudes, etc, relating to the huge healthcare-cost-sword hanging over everyone's heads in the US.

As tragic as accidents can be at a personal level, it's even more so when it has negative financial repercussions for those that were at the periphery of the incident.

[45K10]

Yep, when I lived in Vancouver it was common practice to have to sign a waiver to do shop/club rides but not for the same reasons as it is in the states.

The way I understood the purpose for the "canuckistania" waiver is so the shop or club would not be held liable for any property damage that you may cause during a crash. I.E. crash into someone's $250,000 Ferrari or Maserati that is parked on the side of street.

I only lived in BC for a couple of years but I do not think suing for personal injury is a "normal" activity like it is here in the states.