Ohio Ski Accident Law in a Nutshell
The Ohio ski statute, entitled “Ski Tramways,” describes the duties, rights, and liability of skiers, snowboarders, tramway passengers, and ski area operators. Here are the key aspects of Ohio ski accident law in a nutshell.
Ski collision lawsuits allowed against negligent skiers and snowboarders? | Yes. |
Lawsuits allowed against negligent ski resort operators? | Yes. Ski area operators and their employees whose negligent or grossly negligent actions or failure to act cause property damage or injury to a skier or snowboarder may be sued by the injured person or property owner. |
Damages available? | Yes—depending on the situation, damages may include loss of earnings, lost employee benefits, damage to the ability to earn money in the future, loss of time, household expenses, medical and hospital expenses, home and vehicle modification and other out-of-pocket expenses, permanent injury and disability, physical pain and suffering, physical impairment, mental and emotional pain and suffering, inconvenience, emotional stress, impairment of the quality of life, loss of consortium, loss of affection, loss of lifestyle, loss of society, loss of companionship, loss of the aid and comfort of each other, and/or loss of the enjoyment of life. |
Punitive damages available? | Yes—but only if (i) clear and convincing evidence shows that the negligent party’s actions were committed with “malice or aggravated or egregious fraud,” or the negligent party knowingly “authorized, participated in, or ratified actions” that were malicious or egregious, and (ii) the trier of fact (typically a jury) has determined that the injured person deserves punitive damages. |
Statute of limitations? | An injury, death, and/or property damage lawsuit must be filed within two (2) years of the date of the ski accident, date of death, and/or date of the property damage—or the claims will be forever barred. |
Duties, Rights, and Liability of Skiers, Snowboarders, and Ski Lift Passengers Under Ohio Ski Injury Law
Under Ohio ski accident law, skiers and snowboarders must (i) heed all posted information and other warnings, (ii) know their range of ability to negotiate a ski slope or trail and ski or board within the limits of their ability, (iii) ski and snowboard only on designated slopes and trails, (iv) maintain control of their speed and course at all times, and (v) not cross the track of a passenger tramway except at designated areas.
Skiers and boarders also must refrain from (i) acting in a manner that may cause or contribute to the injury of another person, (ii) colliding with another person or object while skiing, and (iii) placing an object on a ski slope or trail that may cause another skier or snowboarder to fall.
Under Ohio ski law, a skier or boarder must not overtake another skier or snowboarder except to avoid contact and must grant the right-of-way to the overtaken person. When a collision occurs between skiers or snowboarders, the uphill skier or boarder is presumed to have had the best opportunity to avoid the collision and will generally be held responsible.
If involved in a collision in which another person needs medical or other assistance, Ohio skiers and snowboarders must obtain assistance for the injured person, notify the proper authorities, and not leave the collision scene without providing their name and contact information to the injured person and the ski patrol.
When riding passenger tramways, chairlifts, and ski lifts, Ohio ski injury law prohibits skiers and snowboarders from (i) entering or leaving a tramway or lift except at designated areas, (ii) throwing or expelling objects from a tramway or lift, (iii) interfering in any way with the running or operation of a tramway or lift, (iv) failing to educate themselves about how to safely use a tramway or lift before the time that the passenger intends to use it, (v) using a tramway or lift unless the passenger has the ability to use it safely without any on-the-spot instruction from the ski area operator, (vi) engaging willfully or negligently in any type of conduct that contributes to or causes injury to another person, and (vii) using a tramway or lift without the ski area operator’s authority.
Ohio ski law recognizes that skiing and snowboarding are hazardous sports regardless of all feasible safety measures that can be taken. Under Ohio ski accident law, skiers and snowboarders expressly assume the risk of, and legal responsibility for, injury, death, or loss to person or property resulting from the inherent risks of skiing.
Such inherent risks of skiing include, without limitation, injury, death, or property damage caused by (i) changing weather conditions, (ii) surface or subsurface snow or ice conditions, (iii) hard pack, powder, packed powder, wind pack, corn, crust, slush, cut-up snow, and machine-made snow, (iv) bare spots, rocks, trees, stumps, and other forms of forest growth or debris, (v) lift towers or other forms of towers and their components, either above or below the snow surface, (vi) variations in steepness or terrain, whether natural or as the result of snowmaking, slope design, freestyle terrain, jumps, catwalks, or other terrain modifications, (vii) other objects and structures, such as passenger tramways and related structures and equipment, competition equipment, utility poles, fences, posts, ski equipment, slalom poles, ropes, out-of-bounds barriers and their supports, signs, ski racks, walls, buildings, and sheds, and (viii) plainly marked or otherwise visible snow cats, snowmaking and snow-grooming equipment, snowmobiles, and over-snow vehicles.
The same is true for competitors, freestylers, and users of freestyle terrain. They assume the risk of all course, venue, or area conditions, including, without limitation, weather and snow conditions; obstacles; course or feature location, construction, or layout; freestyle terrain configuration and conditions; and other courses, layouts, or configurations of the area to be used. Skiers and boarders using a tubing park also assume the risk of colliding with others on the course.
In short, in certain situations, skiers, snowboarders, competitors, freestylers, and tramway passengers are liable for injury, death, or loss to another person or property caused by failing to live up to their responsibilities under Ohio ski accident law. But skiers, snowboarders, competitors, freestylers, and tramway passengers are not liable for injury, death, or loss to another person or property caused by an injured person’s failure to live up to his or her responsibilities under Ohio ski injury law. Nor are skiers, snowboarders, freestylers, competitors, and tramway passengers entitled to recover for injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by failing to live up to their own responsibilities under Ohio ski law.
Duties and Liability of Ski Area Operators Under Ohio Ski Accident Law
Under Ohio ski law, ski resort operators are responsible for any construction an operator actually performs (or performed) and for the maintenance and operation of any passenger tramway in its ski area.
Ski area operators also must (i) mark all trail maintenance vehicles with flashing or rotating lights that operate whenever the vehicles are working or are moving in a ski area, (ii) mark with visible signage the location of any hydrant or similar equipment used in snowmaking operations that are located anywhere in a ski area, and (iii) mark with visible signage, at the base and top of a ski slope or trail, indicating the relative degree of its difficulty. The signs must be the type that have been approved by the National Ski Areas Association and currently used by the ski and snowboard industry.
Prior to opening any portion of a freestyle terrain area, ski area operators must give competitors and freestylers a reasonable opportunity to visually inspect the course, venue, or freestyle terrain area. The same is true for skiers and snowboarders using a tubing park.
That said, provided a ski area operator complies with Ohio ski injury law, the operator is not liable for injury, death, or loss to person or property suffered by a competitor or freestyler using a freestyle terrain, (i) which is caused by course, venue, or area conditions that a visual inspection should have revealed, or (ii) by colliding with a spectator, competition official, ski area personnel, or another competitor or freestyler.
Likewise, provided a ski area operator complies with Ohio ski law, the operator is not liable for injury, death, or loss to person or property suffered by a skier or snowboarder using a tubing park, (i) which is caused by course design or maintenance or conditions that a visual inspection should have revealed, or (ii) colliding with another skier or snowboarder.
Thus, under certain limited circumstances, Ohio ski resort operators and their employees, whose negligent and/or grossly negligent actions or failure to act cause property damage, injury, or death to a skier or snowboarder, may be held accountable by the injured person or damaged property owner for the operator’s failure to live up to its responsibilities under Ohio ski accident law.
That said, a ski area operator’s legal responsibility to skiers and snowboarders regarding any injury, death, or property damage resulting in any way from an inherent risk of the sport will not be those of the common law duty of premises owners to business invitees. Ski area operators also are not liable for injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by the injured person’s failure to live up to his or her responsibilities under Ohio ski injury law. Nor are ski area operators entitled to recover for injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by the operator’s failure to live up to its responsibilities under Ohio ski law.
Compensation for Injured Skiers, Snowboarders, and Chairlift Passengers Under Ohio Ski Law
Ohio ski accident law allows an injured person (and sometimes, the family of a person injured or killed while skiing) to sue for compensation for injuries due to the actions of another skier, snowboarder, or ski area operator.
The types of damages recoverable may include loss of earnings, lost employee benefits, damage to the ability to earn money in the future, loss of time, household expenses, medical and hospital expenses, home and vehicle modification (such as adding a wheelchair ramp, etc.) and other out-of-pocket expenses, permanent injury and disability, physical pain and suffering, physical impairment, mental and emotional pain and suffering, inconvenience, emotional stress, impairment of the quality of life, loss of consortium, loss of affection, loss of lifestyle, loss of society, loss of companionship, loss of the aid and comfort of each other, loss of the enjoyment of life, and/or other wrongful death damages.
While Ohio law allows the recovery of punitive damages from a negligent skier, snowboarder, or ski area operator, the maximum amount that may be awarded is the greater of twice the amount of actual damages or $350,000.
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We are experienced Ohio ski injury attorneys. We represent skiers, snowboarders, and tramway and lift passengers (and their families) who were seriously injured or died while skiing, boarding, or riding tramways or lifts at Alpine Valley Resort, Boston Mills and Brandywine Ski Resorts, Mad River Mountain, and Snow Trails.
If you or your loved one was seriously injured or killed while skiing, snowboarding, or riding a ski lift in Ohio, contact us immediately. Gathering the evidence before it is lost or destroyed is critical to maximizing your recovery. Time is of the essence. Deadlines are looming that will bar your claims. Call us today.