Paintball Waivers for Home Field??

[Farlow]

To any people with legal knowledge out there. I setup a small field on a few acres in my backyard. Should I have the people I invite over sign a waiver or does it not matter. I do make an attempt to make it safe. Supply of barrel plugs, signs, etc... Please let me know what you think. Thanks.

[HoppysMag]

depends ,if its close friends, no need. If its people you dont know, deffinatly. i wouldnt want to be held acountable if someone lost an eye.

[ben_JD]

Close friends?

There is no such thing once an injury has occurred. Are any of these kids under 18? If so, waivers will mean very little no matter how well written unless also signed by each kid's parent/guardian.

Good luck.

[Farlow]

No kids. So far the youngest player has been around 26. Some of the players I have known for 16 years others are friend or a friend. I may post a waiver and rules sheet that everyone signs as they walk into the bakyard.

[Hasty8]

Farlow, I agree with Ben-JD. Once and injury occurs there is no such creature as friend.

Also, setting up a field on your home property is very dangerous.

Those waivers you fill out at the field are just about useless. I could sign a billion of those things but if my facemask shatters and I lose my eyesight become some goober is shooting hot I can still sue the field and the insurance company for failure to enforce their rules.

Speaking of insurance, you do have that right? Without it you will be giving up you house and all your property just to settle the lawsuit that will certainly follow.

Is it your house or do you live with your parents? I ask becuase even though you set it up and it is their property they are still responsible for what happens on their property. That's how it is in my area. Say I throw a party or even if I just have a friend over for dinner and they drink a large amount of wine I do not even try or even if I do try to stop them but the drive home and on the way home kill or injure someone. Guess what. I'm responsible.

Just like Cain we are our brothers keepers.

[DryIce]

I dont know what type of friends you guys have
but all i know is that i wouldnt make my closest friends have to sign a waiver because i KNOW for a fact that they wouldnt sue me over playing paintball in the woods...
If you have even the slightest feeling that they would sue you I would start calling them an acquaintance and not a friend.
But its up to you

[Farlow]

It is my house and yes I have insurance on it. I see no reason why not to play in the backwoods with a few bunkers. I would say it would be the same as breaking your leg playing volleyball in the backyard. If waviers are no good in court, why bother with them?

[Hasty8]

Farlow. There is a huge difference between household insurance protecting you against a guest suffering a broken leg and it is a beast of an entirely different nature to have people running around your property shooting things at themselves.

If it was as easy as slapping a house on a huge tract of land and being covered by your homeowners insurance why do you think there are million+ dollar policies held by the fields.

If you are not charging anything that your home insurance should cover it but you have got to talk to your rep before hand. Just tell him what is happening and ask him if a friend should slip and fall while walking in my kitchen or if they fall while playing a sport on my property what is my liability. You might be highly surprised by what you are told.

As for the waivers, they are sort of helpful but they can be fought. First of all you have got to have one with very specific language. As any one here who knows a lawyer can attest the best lawyer is the one who make anything say anything else.

It can always be argued that you didn't properly explain the scenario of the equipment was faulty or the field was not properly cleared of debris.

The great thing about American jurisprudence is that anyone can sue anyone else for any reason whosoever.

Just as a truck load of question, then ask some more, then some more. My suggestion would be to set up the field off your property, somewhere no one uses and is far enough that you won't hit any passerbys.

That way if anything happens at least you might not lose your house.

Again, don't take my word as law. Ask several different local and state attorneys, your tax rep and also talk to the local township, county, city and state reps for the area in which you live. For all you know it might be totally illegal to do something like that on your property.

The safest bet may be to only have experienced pball players there.

[PAINTBALLA01]

here is the waiver for my local field

http://www.paintballquest.com/u18waiver.htm

[Hasty8]

That's nice and pretty but where it states that you release all parties from liability even if injury is due to their negligence. That only releases them from civil liability. That form is only saying that if you lose the use of an eye or such that you give up all your rights to sue them in civil court. You, as an affected individual cannot stop or release them from criminal liability.

I know that it is a common understandning that police often ask a victim ro material witness to testify in criminal proceedings but that is only when there is not enough evidence to support that charge.

If the state has enough evidence then you really are not needed at all and criminal charges will be pressed even if you do not want charges to be pressed.

Example, police respond to a call of domestic conflict. The same patrol car is dispatched several times but the wife refuses to press charges to the goober who is beating her. Since the cops have nothin else on this guy they have to let him go.

Now, let's say that a day or so later that same patrol car is driving by a store and sees the husband hitting the wife. The police now have evidence to press criminal assault and battery charges on him and may now choose to also try [operative word is try] to press more charges on him in regards to the earlier phone calls.

Even if the wife here refuses to press charges the police department may choose to charge him and arrest him. It then falls to the public prosecutors office to decide if they will carry the case forth.

Why does the field want to be eleased from civil liability? Because that is where the monetary damages are assesed and the burden of proof in much lighter. In civil court you do not have to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Just as an example. Last wills and testaments are supposed to be totally safe from argumentation by the deceased' living relatives and yet willbuster attorneys are often paid higher then some top level corporate attorneys.

[Farlow]

Something does not sound right. There is a diffrence between running a commercial business and playing any type of sport on you property. I just cannot go on another piece of land, that would be tresspassing. I will check with my insurance carrier. I see no diffrence between playing paintball or tackle football on the same piece of the land. I am not selling equipment, get paid for the service, paying for equipment, etc.. That I think is the diffrence when it comes to insurance on a buisness and on a home, but as I said I will check around.

[Hasty8]

I'm not saying that there is a difference if you were just inviting a bunch of guys over for a game of paintball or a game of touch football.

But I am saying that you would be surprised by the amount of liability you would have if one of those guests got hurt playing football.

Again, I'm speaking from my understadning of current Queens, NY laws. Your city and state laws may be whollyy different than mine. That's why it's best to talk to someone who really knows.


Best of luck.