Required signing waiver of responsibilty

[craig7h]

Well its finally happened to me. I have reservation since Dec for a campground in Wisconsin for over the 4th, site had to be paid in full on the date the reservation was made. That was not really a big deal. Well just this week received an email with a required signature. This waiver was releasing the park from "any" responsibility due to injury of any kind while at the park. It covered walking and falling, playground equipment related injury. The list goes on.
I just wanted you all to know if you are planning a trip to Kieler Wisconsin, I would think twice about staying at Rustic Barn Campground.

[dedmiston]

wapiticountry wrote:
Attorneys are only acting on behalf of their clients.

My experience is that they're usually acting on behalf of themselves.

[Thermoguy]

^^^ That's a good point. I can see restaurants having you sign a wavier, eat hear at your own risk...

[wapiticountry]

doxiemom11 wrote:
New waiver perhaps to cover themselves if you should contract covid19 while staying there. A camper from out of state that probably brought the virus with them, has now been hospitalized. They may have infected others here ??? Could someone try to sue the campground if they get sick ?? Some would try.

As of June 26th there has been over 2000 COVID lawsuits filed in federal court. That is most likely only the tip of a very very large iceberg. A federal waiver of liability for COVID infections is needed sooner rather than later. Otherwise businesses are going to be devastated, the courts overwhelmed, insurance premiums will skyrocket and in the end the average person is going to be stuck with the tab.

[Thermoguy]

I don't think signing a wavier is new. Often, depending on the park, you sign something when you check in. Probably includes the waiver for the park owners. But, with CV19 many companies are trying to do things online before you check in. Less paperwork when you arrive, less time at the counter. My guess is that this is a standard form but just sent early to you as opposed to waiting for you to arrive...

[doxiemom11]

New waiver perhaps to cover themselves if you should contract covid19 while staying there. A camper from out of state that probably brought the virus with them, has now been hospitalized. They may have infected others here ??? Could someone try to sue the campground if they get sick ?? Some would try.

[GravelRider]

Businesses have to protect themselves. There are too many overly litigious scumbags and parasitic lawyers in the country today to do otherwise. It's a shame, but as long as frivolous lawsuits are allowed to continue largely unchecked, this is the natural course of things.

[steveh27]

I would think they would be liable if they were negligent, but not sure if that is intentional. A lawyer should know.

[wapiticountry]

dedmiston wrote:
This smells like an attorney's idea.

A lot of HOAs in my area are having trouble reopening our association pools under the County's new COVID health guidelines. The #1 reason most of the HOAs haven't reopened is because their attorneys have advised them against it. One of the ideas I've heard floated is that residents should sign a release first, which is ridiculous because the homeowners technically own the association pools.

My point is, a lot of zealous attorneys are advising their clients to either shut down or make releases a condition of reopening. Maybe that's what's happening with this park.

Attorneys are only acting on behalf of their clients. The releases are being driven by insurance companies. Such releases are becoming a standard requirement for lodging businesses to obtain coverage. Realistically, they are a thin veneer of protection that can easily be pierced in many instances. They are actually more valuable as a deterrent preventing people from filing nuisance and frivolous claims than actually removing liability in an actual case of serious injury caused by negligence or willful misconduct on the part of the lodging business.

[CFerguson]

lawyers. (spit)

[BB_TX]

dedmiston wrote:
This smells like an attorney's idea.
...
My point is, a lot of zealous attorneys are advising their clients to either shut down or make releases a condition of reopening. Maybe that's what's happening with this park.

Which is what you would do if you owned a business you wanted to protect from frivolous law suits that could at least be a huge inconvenience or at worst ruin your business.

[dedmiston]

This smells like an attorney's idea.

A lot of HOAs in my area are having trouble reopening our association pools under the County's new COVID health guidelines. The #1 reason most of the HOAs haven't reopened is because their attorneys have advised them against it. One of the ideas I've heard floated is that residents should sign a release first, which is ridiculous because the homeowners technically own the association pools.

My point is, a lot of zealous attorneys are advising their clients to either shut down or make releases a condition of reopening. Maybe that's what's happening with this park.

[Hammerboy]

BarabooBob wrote:
I located the following information for the OP. It comes from the website https://www.murphyprachthauser.com/blog/camping-in-wisconsin-the-complete-guide

New Rules in Wisconsin You Should Know
Effective April 1, 2016, campground owners can only be held liable for injuries where the owner intentionally causes injury or acts in a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of others, which are essentially criminal standards. An owner can also be held liable for failing to warn about a dangerous inconspicuous condition the owner knows about. However, a campground owner cannot be held liable for failing to make its property safe, and has no obligation to inspect or police the grounds for dangers that may exist.

The bottom line from all of this is that private campground owners no longer have an incentive to inspect and make changes to their property, because they rarely will be held liable. The safer thing to do is use the public campgrounds, which are not motivated by profit and will not cut corners to make more money.

Do you have questions? Let us know in the comments!

I was just going to post something along these lines. I have never had to sign a waiver to camp at a private park. Sounds like they are covering their behind for hazards they may or may not know of. Easy fix for that uneven sidewalk they haven't fixed. I probably would still go as you probably won't find anything else at this point but I would pass on this place after this trip.

Dan

[BarabooBob]

I located the following information for the OP. It comes from the website https://www.murphyprachthauser.com/blog/camping-in-wisconsin-the-complete-guide

New Rules in Wisconsin You Should Know
Effective April 1, 2016, campground owners can only be held liable for injuries where the owner intentionally causes injury or acts in a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of others, which are essentially criminal standards. An owner can also be held liable for failing to warn about a dangerous inconspicuous condition the owner knows about. However, a campground owner cannot be held liable for failing to make its property safe, and has no obligation to inspect or police the grounds for dangers that may exist.

The bottom line from all of this is that private campground owners no longer have an incentive to inspect and make changes to their property, because they rarely will be held liable. The safer thing to do is use the public campgrounds, which are not motivated by profit and will not cut corners to make more money.

Do you have questions? Let us know in the comments!

[RedRollingRoadb]

Here is some interesting reading on this.

https://blogs.findlaw.com/injured/2014/06/are-campground-liability-waivers-legally-enforceable.html

https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-06-12/trump-rally-liability-waiver-should-you-sign-them

The next to the last paragraph about sums it up.