Thread: Another liability question

Tweet

We are having our 4th annual Halloween bash for our teenager daughters. We have two parties, limited to friends by invitation only. We end up with 40-50 kids per party. We have always had them in our front yard, which is smothered with mostly pine trees. We have weekly movie parties during the summer on our outdoor theater. There is electricity and water both as we use it so frequently; as well as a firepit. However there is probably 30 acres of wooded land beside me that doesn't belong to me. Of course we won't be going onto someone else's property, just along the edge of ours with a haunted trail. It meanders in and out for probably 300-400 feet...maybe. We have never done this before and it is along the side of the property that we really never use. I have decided that it might be smart to have the parents sign a form with emergency contact information and a liability release of some sort, since it is a walk thru. We have well defined trails and all of our props are contained. We have cleaned all sticks, debris and pine cones out of the walk way, but still, I have some concerns. My props aren't really horrific just spooky, dark and scary (we are in a woods) but, just in case of a panic attack, I would want to reach parent. It's the same kids, more or less, that come every year and we always watch a scary movie outside, but I just don't know how they would react to a walk thru. Do you think this is smart? What should my form/liability release say? Any ideas? I have great insurance and I know they would cover any accidents, but I just want to give the parents an option to take their child home with them if they foresee a problem with the walk thru...although the invitation directly states that we are having it.

Can anyone give me wording for this form? TIA

I am VERY excited about this. If we can pull it off, it will be the party of the year at the local school. Thanks to everyone on this board for the amazing ideas! I certainly couldn't have done it without this forum! I plan on taking lots of pics and will post them asap. We aren't having our parties till November 1 and November 7.

Speaking from a legal point of view (I've been working with attorneys since 1991; talk about truly frightening), make sure you have intermittent lighting somewhere along that trail. Put absolutely NOTHING on the ground that could cause anyone to trip. It sounds silly to say that, but sometimes people forget the simple stuff and that is what causes personal injury lawsuits (which is the type of law I deal with these days). Make sure there is nothing sticking up out of the ground that someone could fall on as well. Mark the trail and make sure you tell your guests to stay on the trail. If you are having live actors, have a meeting prior to the big night and make sure you tell them not to touch the guests and not to chase them. Tell the guests that they need to WALK through, not run. Wouldn't be a bad idea to have an adult hidden through the walkthrough every few yards as a security measure.

Hope this helps! Have a great time.

I hadn't even thought about extra adults along the way as a security measure. Thank you for your suggestions very much.

i coordinate a walkathon everyyear. on the registration form is a release of liability thing. SO when they sign up, they sing up to obey the rules, let their pics be used, and release us from liability. If you dont sign the form you cant walk.

if this is invite only, make sure the parents sign the invite and the kids HAVE to turn it in when they arrive or get it back in the mail.

what ive seen goes something along the lines of this ...

Waiver of Release and Liability:
I hereby waive all claims against *****, sponsors, or any personnel for any injury that I might suffer in this event. I attest
that I am physically fit and prepared for this event. I grant full permission for organizers to use photographs of me and quotations from
me in legitimate accounts and promotions of this event

thats super basic. make sure you put something about parental permission and contact info blah blah blah.