We have this large outdoor shopping, dining and entertainment center that has a small playground. It has a small playhouse, a few smaller things for toddlers and then a structure to climb on with a slide.
I noticed recently the slide was gone and today got to chatting with some moms, one of whom works in management at the center, who said that the slide had been removed because a 7 year old boy had fallen off and broken his arm. She said that before the slide was removed, it was inspected and found to not be defective or damaged but that management had decided to remove it because the parents are suing.
This is the kind of play area that gets very crowded depending on time of day and you have lots of parents sitting around, sometimes not even close to the play area, not supervising their kids.
Now, assuming this woman is telling the whole truth, I think it's beyond ridiculous for the parents to be suing and for the slide to be removed. I think parents need to be responsible for their kids and realize that sometimes these things just happen, especially if the kid wasn't using the slide properly (climbing up it or jumping off which kids often do).
Re: Removing the slide from a playground
Yeah, that's completely ridiculous. I would think that other parts of the playground would be just as dangerous as the slide, especially if used improperly. I don't necessarily blame the owners for removing it since they are being sued. I hope the people suing don't get one red cent.
It very well could be, but I still find that ridiculous- unless the slide was found to be in ill repair and that contributed to the injury.
So if I trip walking down the street and there are no cracks, no reason for it to be the sidewalk's fault and break my leg, does my insurance company get to sue whoever built the sidewalk? That's insane.
Oh, it's completely ridiculous. But then insurance companies are the devil and out to do whatever they possibly can to avoid parting with their money. Their business is in getting rich, not protecting people.
I definitely don't doubt that there are insurance companies who would do that. It just makes me crazy that they would actually sue over this.
I think it's ridiculous to take it away altogether. Most parents watch their children pretty well and will stop any rowdy behavior in play places like that. I wonder if that was the case there (rowdy and not supervising or reacted too late) or if it was a freak accident.
SAHM to 4 kiddos... K (5/05), N (4/09), C (11/10) and Baby A 1/13/14
That's ridiculous.
DS took a pony riding class a while back. He had to wear a helmet. He asked me why. My answer? "Because you're a kid and parents like to sue." The teacher was walking behind us and cracked up. It's so true though. Accidents happen. That's what they are - accidents.
Yeah, that's totally different.....your LO could fall off or get bucked off and end up with a traumatic brain injury. That's just being safe, IMO.