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Drowning is Preventable: Learn How to Keep Your Children Safe

Winter may be upon us but that doesn’t mean that drowning accidents are going to stop. The unfortunate part of these types of accidents is that they often lead to feelings of guilt due to the fact that they’re often preventable. Read on to learn about steps you can take to keep your child safe when swimming. If your child, yourself, or another loved has been injured in drowning accident, reach out to Law Offices of Fernando D. Vargas at 909-982-0707 for a free legal consultation.

Many drowning accidents in pools are due to a lack of maintenance

A person who owns a pool in the state of California has certain responsibilities if they want to invite others to swim in that pool. Essentially, they are legally responsible for ensuring that their pool is safe from preventable hazards. For example, they’re responsible for clearing away obstacles from around the pool. They must make sure that harmful levels of chemicals aren’t present, and that there aren’t potentially harmful objects in the pool.

People who own a property with a pool must also install fencing that prevents people from gaining access to the property. If they don’t have a fence, or they don’t properly maintain it or keep it locked, and an accident occurs, then they could be held legally responsible.

Parents also have some responsibility in pool accidents

If you’re at someone else’s property then you’re responsible for keeping an eye on your child and monitoring their safety. That said, if you leave the area or the home after having given responsibility of your children to the pool owners, then they may become legally responsible. Make sure that anyone who’s watching your kids while they’re swimming has the necessary CPR and life-saving skills to do so. Make sure that they are aware if your child can’t swim.

Drowning is one of the main causes of accidental deaths in children

You may not hear about drowning accidents often and you may assume that they’re rare occurrences. Unfortunately, that simply isn’t true. Across the United States, drowning deaths are one of the most common causes of accident death among children. According to the California Department of Public Health, about 50% of drowning accidents occur in backyard pools.

If you’ve been the victim of a loss due to a drowning accident we can help

Whether you were involved in a drowning accident personally, or a close family member was, you may be able to hold the property owner responsible for their negligence or recklessness. Not every drowning accident involves an actionable offense but if someone else was the cause of the accident – even partially – then you may be able to recover damages.

To learn more about your options, reach out to Law Offices of Fernando D. Vargas. You can reach us at 909-982-0707 and we’ll be happy to start with a free legal consultation. We take cases on a contingency basis, which means you don’t pay us until we win your case. Call today to get started.