tents and liability

MG Man · Postby **MG Man** » March 30th, 2011, 6:44 am

following the events on Sunday where tents were not secured properly by the tent rental company, who bears liability in the event a tent damages a car?
Is it the Club, or the tent company?
Given that members rent tents from the Club, I would assume the Club would accept liability, but I think this needs clarification for the benefit of members
And before anyone rolls their eyes at me being difficult again, keep in mind one car was struck by a tent pole, and another was under a tent that had its canopy lifted by the wind and dropped to the ground. Luckily the car was parked on the side of the tent that remained in place...........

MG Man · Postby **MG Man** » March 31st, 2011, 5:46 pm

32 views and no comments?

kes_vtec · Postby **kes_vtec** » March 31st, 2011, 6:03 pm

i know that the tents where ranted for the members, if far as i know there is no profit, cars just "prepays" the bill for you. so any issues will need to me taking up with the rental company.

if i am in the wrong, let me know...

but i will like to think that we are better than just a "sport" but a big family... i did not even see this post .. until now, so shoot the guys a email, and get any details, as this may not be the "best" place... or they may even be talking about it, or plan to on the next meeting.

All the same we will like to keep all you guys happy an safe, so i will look into this for you...

MG Man · Postby **MG Man** » March 31st, 2011, 6:15 pm

why is it whenever I raise an issue here, on the CLUB's official forum, I am always advised it is the wrong place to ask questions?
If I am renting directly from the rental company, why is my receipt issued from a CARS receipt book?
What recourse would I have with the tent company if I cannot even show a binding agreement between myself and the rental company? Kes that makes no sense whatsoever
Would my big family find the 12k it would have cost if I had parked my car 5 min sooner and the tent fell on it and broken the sunroof? Or would I now have to find the rental company, with whom I have no prior relationship?

DEVI · Postby **DEVI** » March 31st, 2011, 9:19 pm

Kevin its a valid question...so here goes ....the waiver form that you sign on entry to CARS Solodex events clears us of any liability for property damage while at the event...however the damage to the persons car was minor and CARS did agree to at least refund that competitors entry fee and the matter was settled....this has never happened before and probably never will again...the Tent Company has been warned to secure their tents better just in case.

MG Man · Postby **MG Man** » April 1st, 2011, 6:59 am

cool
so the waiver also covers the tent. Fair enough
I hope the waiver covers you when I cut yourass at Dex3

mazdamaniac · Postby **mazdamaniac** » April 1st, 2011, 10:19 am

MG Man wrote:cool
so the waiver also covers the tent. Fair enough
I hope the waiver covers you when I cut yourass at Dex3

Ah feel yuh pain MG Man, yuh better get good anti-licks insurance cause the top novice drivers blockin yuh both sides when they move up into class. :oops:

Luke in SS and Anthony in ES. What yuh go do? :twisted:

MG Man · Postby **MG Man** » April 1st, 2011, 12:46 pm

hopefully new springs and shocks by Dex3

d spike · Postby **d spike** » April 1st, 2011, 3:19 pm

DEVI wrote:Kevin its a valid question...so here goes ....the waiver form that you sign on entry to CARS Solodex events clears us of any liability for property damage while at the event...however the damage to the persons car was minor and CARS did agree to at least refund that competitors entry fee and the matter was settled....this has never happened before and probably never will again...the Tent Company has been warned to secure their tents better just in case.

Ummmm... I'm afraid not. A friend of mine, who was assisting me with my car, had a tent drop on his Ford Ranger's fender, denting it. I may be mistaken, but I think that was the second incident that MG Man referred to here:

MG Man wrote: another was under a tent that had its canopy lifted by the wind and dropped to the ground. Luckily the car was parked on the side of the tent that remained in place...........

Based on the fact that he was not competing and you stated:

DEVI wrote: CARS did agree to at least refund that competitors entry fee

I guess you are not aware of this incident.
The Ranger's driver/owner spoke to a CARS official when it happened, but he was told CARS weren't responsible(tough luck, in other words). I will have to jog the ol' memory bank to get more info.
It certainly didn't help my attempts to get a group of seasoned and experienced drivers (of which he was one) to come race at Dex...

MG Man · Postby **MG Man** » April 1st, 2011, 5:24 pm

spike, I think the incident you refer to is a while back, not at the past event...I wasn't aware of that incident

d spike · Postby **d spike** » April 1st, 2011, 10:20 pm

MG Man wrote:spike, I think the incident you refer to is a while back, not at the past event...I wasn't aware of that incident

Yes, it was a while back.
The breeze lifted the corner of the tent, and the upright pole fell off, allowing the roof of the tent to fall, hitting the vehicle.

DEVI · Postby **DEVI** » April 1st, 2011, 10:38 pm

Spike i hear you...but the CARS official was right...we are not responsible...the waiver is there because we are a small non profit club and simply can't afford to repair someone's vehicle in the event of an incident...its a risk we all take including the officials...and btw this waiver has been in effect since the inception of Solodex...i am sorry if this turns people away but as far as i know similar waivers and disclaimers are found throughout all forms of motorsports...in fact its found in most local carparks...it is what it is.

Postby **pete** » April 2nd, 2011, 7:26 am

I guess that the way forward would be if you do rent a tent then just inspect how it's tied down before you park your car in it. If you find that it hasn't been done correctly then inform a CARS official and from there see how best it can be resolved before any damage is done.

There was a lot of wind that Sunday, small branches were coming off the trees and dust was being lifted off the ground so I would estimate that was over 30mph. There may be cases where a rainstorm passes through and produces wind up to 50mph and I'm sure even if the tents are tied properly they're gonna blow away. It's a risk we all take by being there and CARS can't really be held responsible for acts of nature..

MG Man · Postby **MG Man** » April 2nd, 2011, 7:43 am

yeah we tend to take the security of tents for granted
the rental company really short changed the club this time tho
failure to secure the canopy to the poles, PLUS only two anchor weights per tent...
But out of curiosity, if the unsecured canopy was lifted, and came down on someone's head, say a small child for example, and killed that person, would it be considered an accident of nature?
Would the tent company be found negligent, would the waiver stand?
I can see the value of the waiver in terms of accidental injury or damage, but does it absolve people of negligence?
Just playing devil' advocate here, because you never know what can happen

X2 · Postby X2 » April 2nd, 2011, 12:13 pm

MG Man wrote:yeah we tend to take the security of tents for granted
the rental company really short changed the club this time tho
failure to secure the canopy to the poles, PLUS only two anchor weights per tent...
But out of curiosity, if the unsecured canopy was lifted, and came down on someone's head, say a small child for example, and killed that person, would it be considered an accident of nature?
Would the tent company be found negligent, would the waiver stand?
I can see the value of the waiver in terms of accidental injury or damage, but does it absolve people of negligence?
Just playing devil' advocate here, because you never know what can happen

Your concern is very valid. A general waiver may not cover personal injury. Is there insurance paid for the rental of the lot ?

I will note along with others that the tent company did not secure the tents adequately as not enough weights were in place even for mild wind/breeze. (Granted wind gusts that day were excessive) But in retrospect, the tent fee goes up and the quality and service provided goes down ? As a member I would move that the value is not justified. Not a good way to do business... tent supplier getting comfortable ?

saltydog · Postby **saltydog** » April 4th, 2011, 8:40 am

I would say that there is public liability insurance in place - but not for fender benders

GEAR_HEAD · Postby **GEAR_HEAD** » April 4th, 2011, 8:51 am

^^^ yuh coming next solodex??

saltydog · Postby **saltydog** » April 4th, 2011, 9:38 am

not sure my friend, kinda busy these days. will try to make a few before the end of the year.

Doing some work on the car at the moment, feel it will be a lot to handle at dex though.

Postby **Team Loco** » April 5th, 2011, 10:51 pm

those tents were ready to take off like kites. i actually had to leap to pull down one and push away from mg's car. the workers of the tent company didnt use common sense. concrete anchors were only used on the western side of the tents. on the eastern side the ropes to anchor the top, were tied to the yellow barricades. incompetence i tell you.

nevertheless, it was nice for owner of the tent company to come by and resolve the problem. hope it never happens again.