WA Do Event Organisers on Facebook Have Liability for Accidents?

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Devans

Member
15 June 2016
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Hi everyone, I'm looking for some help regarding liability for events organised on Facebook.

I am associated with a 4WD group on Facebook and we are trying to see if there could be any legal action against the group admins or event organisers if someone's car were to get damaged, someone was to get injured or potentially die. The events would consist of things like free weekend camping trips or day-long trips.

I don't have any understanding of the law with respect to this kind of topic but I would have thought you are only liable if there is a price to an event, if you are promoting training of some kind or if you encourage unsafe practices.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,
 

Rod

Lawyer
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27 May 2014
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I would have thought you are only liable if there is a price to an event

No. Price to an event is not relevant. If you are organising events where it is foreseeable someone may get hurt, then you may be legally liable for injuries.

Recommend you get some advice, and maybe incorporate your group as an association. Read this about incorporation.
 
S

Sophea

Guest
In order for you to be liable for negligence, you must first owe the other party a duty of care. A duty of care exists when there is a relationship of proximity between two parties. The test is whether it is reasonably foreseeable that your act or omission might harm the other person.

There are also common categories of relationships in which a duty of care is automatically owed such as:
  • A commercial relationship between the parties (such as a contractual relationship or an undertaking).[2]
  • A special relationship between the parties (such as that between parent and child)
  • An undertaking by one party to do something for the other.
Depending on the precise nature of the relationship you have with others and how much control you exercise over the outings etc, will determine whether you owe them a duty of care. You still won't be liable for anything as long as you don't breach that duty of care which simply requires you to take reasonable steps not expose the other parties to risk of injury or damage.

The cheapest and easy step - put a disclaimer and liability waiver on your facebook page that states that all excursions are simply an outing of interested people, they are not club or association sanctioned events, and that any participants are responsible for any damage to their vehicles or personal injuries that occur on those excursions. Of course, that liability will do nothing if a court finds that you are in fact a club or an association that is arranging and taking the lead with these types of outings and the participants are relying on you for advice and to take care of them. If this is more like the real scenario I would speak with a lawyer about it.