Injured Playing Football?

comercrawley

the personal injury lawyers

Your questions answered……

Question:  I injured my knee badly a few months ago whilst playing football.  The injury was caused by a player from the other team going in for a tackle badly (the player was sent off following the tackle).  Would I have any claim for compensation against the other player or his team?

Answer:   It is possible to claim compensation for sporting injuries such as the one that you describe.  Whether or not the claim is successful will depend on the circumstances.

As with the majority of personal injury claims, to succeed with the claim it will be necessary to prove negligence.  Participants in sporting activities owe a duty of care to those that they are playing with and against.  Whether or not there has been a breach of that duty of care will depend on the act carried out.

It is helpful that the player was sent off by the referee following the incident but more would need to be proved.  In sporting injury claims, it is not merely sufficient to show that the Defendant was in breach of the rules of the game (this compares with road traffic accident claims where breach of the Highway Code is indicative of negligence). 

It will be necessary to prove that the foul was such that a reasonable player (at the level of football that you were playing) would have realised that their actions carried a significant risk of serious injury.  Additionally, when taking part in sport, you are said to consent to the ordinary risks of the game and thus it will need to be shown that the tackle by the other player went beyond this.

Therefore, if it can be proved that your injury resulted from an intentional foul then you may be able to pursue a claim for compensation; if however it was merely the case of a late and clumsy tackle by the other player, your claim is unlikely to be successful.

Finally, in practical terms, it will need to be investigated whether the player’s actions are covered by an insurance policy.

If you have a question for our legal advice team you can submit it by email: enquiries@comercrawley.co.uk or in writing to:  Chancery House, Victoria Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HZ.