OT-insurance question

[G. Fite]

My DD (then 9) broke her wrist at Little gym. It was the last class of the semester. All the parents were watching the Big Show and then the teacher said "you guys can just play now."

My DD was being silly and fell right in front of me, my DH and the instructor. She broke her wrist and had to wear a cast for 6 weeks. The staff sent her a get well card and a teddy bear.

Now my question, are they responsible for the bill at all. Our part will be 1000.00! We never signed a waiver. My sister says we take the risk of injury by allowing them to participate. which seems right to me on one hand but on the other hand I don't want to pay the 1000.oo when I would much rather spend it in disney World!!!!

any thoughts? I was planning to just pay it but I just talked to insurance company and found out we would have to pay the 1000.oo deductable.

Thanks,
Gina

 

[minkydog]

I guess it depends on how bad you want to take them to court. Anybody can sue anybody for nearly anything. It sounds like they arent exactly taking responsibility for the bill. So if you want them to pay for it, I guess you need to talk to an attorney. Or let you insurance company know it happened at the gym and see if they can pursue it for you.

 

[Hannathy]

I would say you should pay, you say she was being silly and it sounds like it was her fault. I firmly believe unless they knowingly allowed something dangerous to exist it was an accident and they can happen anywhere. I really hate how our society has developed a take everyone to court mentallity. My son fell at a paren'ts night at school while playing in the gym, he had a concusion and had to go to the ER, CT scan,etc. I paid, never even thought of taking them to court it was AN ACCIDENT.

 

[scraptoons]

Making them pay would probably take legal action, which costs much much more than the $1000. Plus, I hear the legal stuff causes sooo much stress and everyone that has been through one says avoid it at all costs. (no pun intended). Thank the good Lord for a healthy child and pay the money. WDW will always be there.

Kids breaking bones happens all the time. You are not the first to have to pay deductables, and you are certainly not the last. Welcome to parenthood.
Be fortunate that it happened at the gym and not at home (see short story below).

I have a friend whose DS broke his leg at home while she was in bed asleep and DH was in the bathroom. Little DS didn't talk yet, so they didn't have a "good story" to tell in the ER. The doctor reported them to CPS and they were under a stressful investigation. They found out that anything NOT sports related at home can easily become suspicious.

My DD broke her elbow "being silly" on our couch. Fortunately we didn't get reported, because our story was straight, and consistant with hers. She did not have a very clean fracture and had to have surgery and stay overnight. It cost us the same as yours, but the total bill was $10,000. Thank goodness for insurance coverage we do have!
We made payments, and it took a year to pay it off.

 

[G. Fite]

I have never thought of suing!

I haven't even approached the gym to ask if their insurance will cover our deductible. All along I was planning to pay for it but then I started thinking that maybe the Gym has accidental insurance just for this very reason! I really don’t know.

I do believe it was an accident and it was her fault for being silly but the instructor never should have told them to have free play with so many people in the room.

I am just wondering if I should approach the gym or not.
I would NEVER take legal action. I don’t even have a lawyer!!!

THANKS!

 

[scraptoons]

Hey

It would be interesting to know if the gym could cover it. Part of me says it wouldn't hurt to ask. But then again, I would wonder what their reaction would be, and would future interactions be awkward.

Seems like if they had the coverage, you would have had to sign some sort of accident report or something for the insurance company. Maybe you could in a friendly way ask if you need to fill out some sort of accident report for them. Their reaction would maybe give you some clue?

Hopefully someone else will read this thread and give you something based on their own experience.

 

[Rai's Mommy]

I would give them a call and explain that you received the medical bill from your daughter's accident on their property and you were wondering how they handle med bills from accidents that occur during one of their classes that is whether you should forward the information directly to their insurance adjuster or if you should simply submit copies through them. Since you did not sign a release you may be able to have the bills covered and it wouldn't hurt to ask. Asking which approach you should take to secure reimbursement for the medicals will probably cause them to have to look into the matter a little more carefully for a response than they might if you asked a yes or no question like "Will the gym cover the expenses?"

I do agree with the other posters, though, and wouldn't push it beyond that if it were my daughter given the circumstances of the incident. I'm not a big supporter of suing over accidents when the person injured (or his/her parents in this case) had the same opportunity to see any dangers that may have existed and to avoid them but did not take any steps to do so.

Good luck!

 

[KHubbs94]

If the gym's liability policy carries "Medical Payments" coverage, they may and I stress may extend payment. Think of it this way, the gym carrries liability insurance to protect themselves against their negligent acts, just as you carry insurance on your automobile to pay damages to someone else when an accident is your fault. If the gym pays you a dime, they have accepted fault in the incident, which then opens them up to a potential law suit, not that you are going to sue, however I would be willing to bet their liabililty carrier would fight the claim.

 

[tatooed goofy]

When does an accident become just that....an accident. Our society is in the mentality that is always someone else's fault and I should not have to pay for it. This thought process sickens me. This is just MHO. Sorry if it is not the popular one.

 

[Mom to Jordan]

I would just ask the director if the center carries insurance that helps to cover the medical cost of injuries. There should have been an insident report made by the center at the time of injury and you might want to ask for a copy for your insurance too. I suspect that it will end up being your insurance that will have to pay for the accident, but that is just the price of being parents. Glad it was not worse. Kids heal fast.

Jordan's mom

 

[mamacatnv]

I sat on the board for a local baseball league for years. The league carries insurance thru the national organization. In the event of an injury, the policy would pick up where the parents private policy leaves off less a $100 deductible. Many parents are unaware this exists even tho we tried to keep our parents informed.

I would simply call them up and ask if they have any coverage that picks up where yours leaves off. Given the type of activity I bet they don't but it never hurts to ask. If they do, great, if not I would then leave it alone. They did not cause the injury to your DD. Injuries and the costs of taking care of them are just one of the costs we incur by having kids and letting them live outside of a bubble.

My son got injured playing high school football, we signed a waiver yet our insurance company did call and asked a gazillion questions about how/where the injury occurred. The insurance company was looking for a way to get out of paying the bill, I was irritated and once they got the message that I signed a waiver and that it occured on school property they took care of the bills and never bothered us over the matter again. I hate to think of what they would have tried to do if it had been a group of kids playing on the neighbors lawn.

 

[XYSRUS]

My! I would never think of making the gym pay for an accident, unless they were truly negligent. Thank goodness you have coverage. Deductibles are a way of life. Nothing is free. Kids manage to go to the ER very often-the 4 boys in my life keep me busy and poor!

 

[scraptoons]

In reference to Mamacatnv, her annoying insurance experience reminded me of when my DD broke her elbow falling off our couch.

Our insurance company sent this annoying questionare that was obviously standard for an auto or work related incident. It irked me to have to take my time to fill it out since non of the questions applied to our situation. The questionnaire seemed to imply that the insurance was looking for someone to be at fault.

The reality was, it was no one's fault. Just an accident. It happens. I did not want to waste my time filling out that form. Especially since there wasn't any space for my "other" options of the incident occurance.

They sent a new one every few weeks, and finally someone called me. I sorta let them have it. Its a kid's bone for crying out loud. Not some hard working guy with a sprained back! I know lawyers work hard to defend our rights, but too much of a good thing has gotten our society out of control.

There I feel better. Ever since then, I have to tell the kids...we are NOT going to the ER today! Funny how they change when you set boundaries and expectations for them. Don't you think staying away from ER and/or clinics on a beautiful Saturday afternoon is a great expectation? haha

Have a wonderful accident free day!

 

[LisaNJ25]

I would pay it. It doesnt sound like the gym did anything wrong. It could of happened in your front yard.

When my son was 3 he fell off the shoe bench at pennys, at 7 he broke his elbow at the skating rink. They were all accidents, we just paid our part. I will admit I did not have to pay anything near $1000. Ouch.