Fall in California means the arrival of the spookiest season. When the calendar flips to October, families will be looking for some Halloween fun, and not just on October 31st. Haunted houses, haunted hayrides, and pumpkin farms open early to invite people in for some autumn attractions.
But those events meant for amusement and chills can also present unique injury risks. The ghosts can’t hurt you, but if a farm owner or an event organizer neglects to add safety to the schedule, visitors, and even children can suffer harm.
Maison Law represents injured victims hurt during holiday celebrations and while at Halloween attractions. We offer a free consultation to all California personal injury victims. We want to make sure victims know how to hold a property owner or a Halloween business operator fully liable for medical bills and other recovery costs.
Do I Need a Lawyer After Getting Injured During a Haunted Hayride?
If your injury only involves a minor bump or bruise, you may not need the help of legal representation. But if your injury is more serious, like a broken bone, or a severe concussion, you might need to speak to a skilled California Halloween injury lawyer about your case.
Maison Law’s personal injury lawyers can investigate your accident and the owners and organizers involved. They’ll use this evidence to help maximize the compensation you receive. Your lawyer also protects you when liability insurance companies try to blame you for your accident or attempt to downplay how badly you’ve been hurt.
Duty of Care for all Amusement Parks and Farm Attractions
California law holds all business owners, including seasonal businesses, liable for the safety of their customers, clients, and visitors. They owe their guests a “duty of care” to keep their visit as safe as possible.
Owners and operators must remove hazards they may accidentally create. They must also monitor their grounds for the hazards that other customers may leave behind. When they don’t repair or clean up these dangers and someone gets hurt, victims can seek financial support as they recover under premises liability law.
Visitors participating in a hayride or a haunted woods tour may have to sign a liability waiver form, but that doesn’t protect the business from all liability. Liability forms usually protect businesses from responsibility for injuries from risks that are reasonably expected when getting on and off a wagon or touring a farm. But when hazards go beyond the reasonable risks, businesses, farms, and property owners could still be fully accountable.
Types of Common Injuries at Halloween Attractions and Hayrides
People can suffer harm from so many sources, just in their normal everyday lives. But going to an amusement park or farm can present unique dangers that are sometimes hard to avoid.
All sorts of debris and even slick mud can end up around pumpkin patches and festival booths. A hayride on a wagon might carry some very distinctive risks that aren’t usually encountered at home or in a city.
These are just some of the hazards that may leave you or a family member suffering from an injury:
- Injury in a fall off a wagon during a hayride.
- Collision caused by an out-of-control wagon.
- Injury caused by a farm animal.
- Feet and toes being run over by a tire or wagon wheel, or stepped on by a horse.
- Slip-and-fall or trip-and-fall injury due to a hazard left out at a Halloween event.
- A heart issue caused by a sudden loud noise or scare.
- A shock delivered by exposed drop cords or wiring.
- A burn caused by machinery or an open flame.
What to Do After a Halloween Hayride Accident
See to your safety first. Call 911 if you need an ambulance and possibly a trip to the emergency room.
Your attorney would collect all evidence available after an accident. But you should also snap a photo of the obstacle that hurts you or a family member. That hazard will likely be removed or repaired as soon as you leave.
Get contact information from all witnesses around and note the presence of any surveillance cameras nearby. If you must leave for the hospital, ask someone with you to collect details for you.
Once your injury has been stabilized, contact Maison Law. If you will need to hire a lawyer, it’s best to act quickly. You want to give your attorney a head start on tracking down witnesses for testimony. Your lawyer also needs to request surveillance footage before it gets erased. The sooner your lawyer can get started building your case, the sooner you can hope to receive the money you’ll need to pay for your every medical bill.
Contact a California Halloween Accident Lawyer
If you or a loved one are hurt while on a farm for a haunted hayride or while at any Halloween attraction, please contact our California personal injury lawyers. You should know what your injury is worth and how to hold owners and operators fully responsible for your hospital expenses and lost time at work.
If your child is hurt, Maison Law is ready to compassionately represent your family. We make sure young victims earn full support for present needs and for injury issues that may arise in the future over the course of their development.
Schedule a free, no-obligation case review with us. And if you decide we can help you earn more for your injury, you won’t need any money to hire us. Maison Law works on a contingency basis. It means that we don’t get paid unless we win your case for you. Then our fee comes out of the support you are awarded.
