Hurt at a Haunted House. What Now?

Haunted houses are what makes the Halloween season worth waiting for, for many adults and teens. America Haunts estimates that "there are over 1,200 haunted attractions charging admission fees to their events and about 300 amusement facilities producing similar attractions". "The typical haunted attraction averages around 8,000 paid guests and charges an average of $15 per person," America Haunts estimates. Needless to say, this business is booming year-after-year because we enjoy being scared.

Kevin Hart and Jimmy Fallon visited a haunted house on the Tonight Show, this year. Nothing is more funny than watching them maneuver through each of the rooms! While watching this video you can't help but anticipate someone falling, running into something, etc...Thankfully no one did.

Picture it. You're running through the haunted house. It's dark and it becomes eerily quite. Out jumps a bloody man with a chain saw. You run like the wind, straight into a wall, and suffer head trauma because of poor lighting. What happens next? Attorney T. Morton and team discussed the very real possibility of haunted house injury this week. We found little case law exists addressing injuries occurring in, or around, these attraction. That might be because patrons accept the risks associated with participation, and if injured don't sue. Another reason may be that haunted houses are heavily regulated and for that reason are usually safe.

The Kansas Office of the State Fire Marshall regulates the following:

• Automatic Sprinkler System 
• Automatic Fire Alarm System 
• Number of exits
• Exit signs, illumination and emergency lighting
• Travel distance to exits
• Use of flammable liquids
• Use of combustible interior finish
• Location of extinguishing equipment
• Adequate staff trained in evacuation and equipped with flashlights
• Established emergency procedures
• Readily available means to notify local fire, police and emergency medical services​

Even haunted house owner(s), operator(s), employees, etc... can act negligently. Although you expect, and possibly accept, a certain amount of danger when at these attractions you are owed a duty. Acting, or failing to act, as a reasonable/prudent person would in this circumstance/setting may mean they have breached this duty. If you suffer injury because of this, you may be entitled to compensation. 

Potential injuries include:

• Slip and fall injuries
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Spinal Cord Injury
• Broken bones, and more

If goblins, ghouls and ghosts jumping out at you is your idea of fun, more power to you. If while at a haunted house you are injured, and believe it is because of negligence, call Attorney T. Morton right away at 913.602.7288. 


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