Entertainment activities have hidden risks; willing to bear the risks voluntarily

[2] Compiled from: Shandong High Court
 
As winter arrives, snow begins to fall in many places, and many people build snowmen and have snowball fights. Amid the fun, there are also significant safety hazards. Recently, extreme sports venues have frequently made headlines, and in entertainment activities like trampoline jumping, many participants have been injured. So the question arises: when participating in recreational activities with certain risks, if harm occurs, should other participants be held responsible? Should the venue operator be held responsible?

 

 
Case 1: Fracture from Snowball Fight
On January 24, 2016, plaintiff Wu, an employee of a company, and five others including defendant Wang were having a snowball fight. Later, the plaintiff felt foot pain and was diagnosed with fractures of the second, third, and fourth metatarsals and the first cuneiform bone of the right foot. The plaintiff claimed the injury was caused by being dragged and piled on by the five defendants, but all five defendants denied piling on the plaintiff and stated that too much time had passed to recall the details clearly.
 
The court held that the plaintiff Wu bore the burden of proof for his claim of being piled on and dragged, but he only provided a unilateral statement without actual evidence. The five defendants also denied the plaintiff's statement, so there was no evidence to establish a causal link between the plaintiff's injury and the defendants' actions. Moreover, snowball fighting in China is a common, informal, spontaneous recreational activity, and ordinary adults generally understand its risks, indicating that participants can foresee its dangers. Additionally, there was no evidence that the five defendants engaged in malicious harmful conduct during the snowball fight. The resulting injury should be considered an accident rather than a tort, and cannot be attributed to any party or individual involved in the play. The consequences should be borne by the plaintiff himself. The court lawfully dismissed the plaintiff's claims.
 
 
Case 2: Trampoline Visitor Compensation Claim
On February 19, 2019, plaintiff Teng (aged 16) visited the defendant's amusement park. While participating in a trampoline activity, he injured his knee upon landing, with no collision with others. He was later taken to the hospital by ambulance. The injury was assessed as a Class 10 disability. Teng sued the amusement park for damages totaling 118,145.69 yuan, claiming the park caused his injury. The amusement park argued that Teng had signed a risk acknowledgment agreement provided by the park, and that the park had fulfilled its safety warning obligations.
 
The court held that the plaintiff was injured while playing on the trampoline at the amusement park, without any external force such as pushing or collision, and without any quality defect or other flaw in the trampoline itself that could have caused the injury. Teng's injury resulted from the inherent risks of trampoline activity. However, as the operator, the amusement park knew the plaintiff was a minor without a guardian present, yet still allowed him entry without special arrangements for minors, showing some fault in the incident. The park should bear reasonable compensation liability. At the time, Teng was 16 years old and should have had some awareness of the risks of trampoline activity, so the responsibility could not be entirely attributed to the defendant amusement park. The court lawfully ordered the defendant amusement park to bear 30% of the claimed damages, totaling 41,583.02 yuan, and dismissed the plaintiff's other claims.
 
 
Relevant legal provision: Civil Code
Article 1176A person who voluntarily participates in recreational or sports activities with certain risks and suffers harm due to the actions of another participant shall not request that other participant to bear tort liability; however, this does not apply if the other participant intentionally or with gross negligence caused the harm.
The liability of the activity organizer shall be governed by the provisions of Articles 1198 to 1201 of this Code.
 
Article 1198Operators, managers of business premises such as hotels, shopping malls, banks, stations, airports, sports venues, and entertainment venues, or organizers of public activities or mass events, who fail to fulfill their security obligations and cause harm to others, shall bear tort liability.
If harm is caused to another person by the act of a third party, the third party shall bear tort liability; if the business operator, manager, or organizer fails to fulfill the duty of security, they shall bear corresponding supplementary liability. After bearing supplementary liability, the business operator, manager, or organizer may seek recourse from the third party.
 
Article 1199If a person with no capacity for civil conduct suffers personal injury while studying or living in a kindergarten, school, or other educational institution, the kindergarten, school, or other educational institution shall bear tort liability; however, if it can prove that it has fulfilled its educational and management duties, it shall not bear tort liability.
 
Article 1200If a person with limited capacity for civil conduct suffers personal injury while studying or living in a school or other educational institution, and the school or other educational institution fails to fulfill its educational and management duties, it shall bear tort liability.
 
Article 1201If a person with no capacity for civil conduct or a person with limited capacity for civil conduct suffers personal injury caused by a third party other than the kindergarten, school, or other educational institution while studying or living in such institution, the third party shall bear tort liability; if the kindergarten, school, or other educational institution fails to fulfill its management duties, it shall bear corresponding supplementary liability. After bearing supplementary liability, the kindergarten, school, or other educational institution may seek recourse from the third party.
 
 
[1] The author's perspective
Individuals are the primary persons responsible for their own life and health. When participating in recreational activities, they should fully understand the risks and the activity's safety assurance capabilities in advance, remain cautious throughout the activity, protect their personal safety, and avoid causing harm to others.

 
 

Guardians must fulfill their guardianship responsibilities and must not place their guardianship duties on the event organizers or others, so as to avoid unnecessary harmful consequences.
 
Operators and organizers of recreational activity venues should fully inform participants of the risks of the activity and take effective measures to prevent harm. They must not be inactive due to the concept of "assumption of risk." They should clearly and specifically inform participants in writing of the hidden risks and possible harmful outcomes of the activity, and if necessary, require participants to sign relevant written documents. They may also purchase insurance in advance to minimize losses.