24 Hour Fitness Hit With Brain Injury Lawsuit
A 66-year old grandmother is embroiled in a brain injury lawsuit with one of the nation’s largest fitness chains, after a life-altering fall from a treadmill.
Plaintiff Etelvina J. and her husband Pedro filed the brain injury lawsuit against 24 Hour Fitness for gross negligence, seeking $3.8 million in lost wages and future long-term medical care, including physical therapy, psychological counseling, and other care services.
According to the brain injury lawsuit, Etelvina, then 60, fainted while exercising on a 24 Hour Fitness treadmill in January 2011. She reportedly fell backward and hit her head with such force on nearby equipment that her skull fractured in several places. Etelvina was hospitalized for nearly four months and had to undergo multiple surgeries to remove blood clots and reduce swelling on her brain. She still contends with severe brain injuries that affect her everyday routine, such as driving.
In addition to the charges of gross negligence, the brain injury lawsuit alleges 24 Hour Fitness violated safety standards by failing to provide an adequate 6.5 feet safety zone behind the treadmill and placing their treadmills just three feet in front of other heavy exercise equipment.
The brain injury lawsuit is currently in settlement talks with a mandatory settlement conference scheduled for Jan. 12, 2017. If the parties cannot reach a settlement, the brain injury lawsuit will proceed to trial on February 27.
Treadmill Brain Injury Risks
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), about 460,000 injuries, primarily from treadmill accidents, are treated in emergency room each year. There have been “30 reported deaths associated with treadmills for the 10 year period from 2003-2012 or an average of about three per year (2012 is the last year for which fatality reporting is nearly complete),” the CPSC reports.
Regardless of these statistics, individuals are mostly on their own in avoiding injury while working out. There is no local, state, or federal agency designated to perform safety checks at fitness centers or to enforce recommended safety clearance zones. This lack of regulation could pose a particular risk for equipment-related injuries, with treadmill accidents the most common cause of injury.
“Ninety-nine percent of the time in these accidents, it’s operator error. People get distracted,” said Ken Reinig, owner of Reinig Insurance Solutions, a Colorado-based firm that insures about 1,100 independent fitness clubs and gyms across the country.
“Treadmills are unique in that once the treadmill is set to its desired speed or incline, the machine doesn’t know if you lost your balance or are reaching for a water bottle or changing the music channel. With every other piece of equipment, if you run into difficulty, the machine stops.”
Filing a Brain Injury Lawsuit
If you or a loved one has suffered a brain injury as the result of a treadmill accident or were injured by other fitness equipment, you should contact an experienced personal injury attorney at The Emma Law Firm regarding your legal options. Fill out the form below for more information.
At the time of this article The Emma Law Firm did not represent any of the individuals involved in this accident.