

People often think that if an injury occurs while playing sports, there is nothing they can do. This is simply not true. If the sport is supervised, there may well be a duty of care on the part of the organisers. Even during informal recreational sport, the law expects people to behave responsibly and not inflict injury on others.
You would not be able to claim if you were injured by a simple sports accident such as a fair football tackle or if the organisers had taken every care to ensure your safety. However, if the sport organiser knew there was a risk they hadn’t warned you about, or taken reasonable measures to avoid, you may well be able to claim compensation. Similarly, if another player did something which they might reasonably have expected to risk injury to you, you might be able to claim against that player.
The actual amount of compensation awarded is calculated according to the degree of injury (and subsequent effects) and the extent to which someone else was to blame. How any given injury was sustained is not the primary factor. It may be considered that, by playing sport, you accepted a level of risk, but that does not affect the liability of others if they caused you injury through negligence or malice.
If you have suffered an injury which wasn’t mainly your fault, the law says you are entitled to compensation for pain, suffering and loss of amenity. You may also gain compensation for loss of earnings and additional expense incurred due to the injury.
Personal injury law has established a duty of care on the part of people, companies and organisations to ensure they do everything reasonably possible to avoid causing injury to others. As examples, if land owners allows the public access to their property, they should ensure that walkways are adequately maintained. Shopkeepers should keep aisles clear of objects shoppers might trip over, and clean up spillages promptly to prevent slips. When playing sports, the law expects people to behave responsibly and not inflict injury on others. There is also specific employment law which lays down the duties of employers to minimise the risk of personal injury.
If your injury claim is to succeed, the law says you must be able to prove “on the balance of probabilities” that your injury is due to negligence by another party. Note that this does not necessarily mean that you have to be entirely fault-free; you need only demonstrate that the other party is more than 50% responsible for your injury. If you can do this, you may then be able to win compensation under the law.
Amounts are determined by legal decision on a case by case basis. In England and Wales, Judges have issued broad guideline figures for different types and degree of injury, laid down in the Judicial Studies Board Guidelines. This has been built up from case law in personal injury claims. Information is given on this site under individual types of injury.