Liability for personal injury: Your rights

Questioner

I had a sitting lesson (learning to sit properly on a horse) from an instructor. I had already indicated that my horse is young and has an imbalance. The instructor suggested riding without stirrups during the lesson. I clearly indicated that I would then very likely fall off my horse. (With stirrups I could ride my horse perfectly well). However, she kept insisting and I went along with this: I took off the stirrups against my will. The inevitable happened: I lost my balance and fell very hard on my back. After two months I still have complaints and am not able to work fully. Who is liable?

Lawyer

Dear questioner, Based on your story, there is indeed a chance that the instructor or riding school is liable for your injury. To have this investigated further, I advise you to contact a personal injury specialist. That is a lawyer or legal expert who specializes in this and knows exactly what you are entitled to. If the instructor (or riding school) is liable, they are also obliged to reimburse the (reasonable) costs for a personal injury specialist. It will not cost you anything. If you wish, I could also assess your case further. You can contact me for this via my personal details.

Lawyer

I would definitely hold the instructor liable because you have clearly stated that you found this too dangerous and if she still insists then it can be said that she is liable. I therefore advise you to send a registered letter and hold her liable. I assume that she is a professional instructor and then she will undoubtedly be insured for this kind of thing. If you want, you can also seek legal assistance. The costs of this are often reimbursed by the insurance of the liable party. You can contact one of the lawyers on this site directly without obligation, e.g. via the link 'direct contact' that you see - if you are logged in - with this answer

Lawyer

Dear questioner, In sports and game situations, players and practitioners are expected to take more responsibility and be liable for their own actions, including those caused by someone else's fault. Of course, there are duties of care, especially on the part of the professional; (the latter can however be insured for the risk of giving driving lessons and the errors of judgment that are made.) *You can of course always try to shift your damages to the instructor by means of a letter/claim for liability on the grounds of tort and await the answer before taking further steps.

Questioner

Thanks for your answers. I will send a registered letter to the instructor. The instructor's website states that in case of physical injury, the damage is 'maximum 10,000 euros per event'. Now that is of course very high, but I want at least the costs that I have now had to make back: not being able to work (I am self-employed so I have lost income), traveling to the hospital and in addition the doctor advised me to follow physiotherapy which I do not get reimbursed.

Lawyer

Partly because this is a sports and game situation and partly because you are self-employed, I advise you not to send a notice of liability yourself. I advise you to engage a personal injury specialist who can assess your liability, calculate your damages and conduct negotiations with the other party. As indicated, hiring a personal injury specialist often costs you nothing.

Lawyer

You can also claim only the damage you suffered. In addition to the extra costs or extra income that you miss, this can also be non-pecuniary damages. But keep in mind that not much non-pecuniary damages are awarded in the Netherlands. Do not forget to claim statutory interest because you are also entitled to that.

Questioner

Krista: my question is what can happen with submitting a claim yourself. I also doubt whether hiring a personal injury specialist often costs nothing. If it turns out afterwards that I am liable myself, the high costs incurred are for myself, I assume? I am not insured for this. In my case, you can take the term 'self-employed' liberally: I do not have a company and no Chamber of Commerce registration. I pay my income tax annually and not monthly. I also do not have insurance in case of illness.

Questioner

Thank you Robert: however, compensation for pain and suffering is not something I would want to gamble on. At most, income compensation and lost income.

Lawyer

In order to answer your questions, I think it would be wise to consult by telephone. I can then also discuss the situation in which you are liable yourself. You can send me an e-mail via the 'direct contact' button. I can then give you my telephone number so that you can call me.

Lawyer

You can contact one of the lawyers on this site directly, without obligation, for example via the link 'direct contact' that you will see with this answer if you are logged in. Sometimes lawyers also work on a no cure no pay basis, so no compensation, so you do not have to pay anything.

Questioner

In the meantime I have emailed Krista but after a few days still no response, unfortunately. Now I have contacted another lawyer who is handling the case. Thank you all very much.

Lawyer

Dear Madam, I did indeed receive your email and immediately sent you an email back with my contact details. I understand from you that you did not receive this email. In any case, it is good to hear that you have contacted another lawyer and that he will assist you. I wish you much strength and hope that you will recover quickly.

Questioner

Dear Krista, I did not receive an email from you. I assumed you were busy and my email had gone through. Something must have gone wrong. How annoying!

Lawyer

Perhaps the email ended up in your spam folder?

Questioner

Now that you mention it...I did a quick search and it is indeed there. In the spam folder. I didn't see it there because a lot of stuff ends up in the spam folder. My apologies!