Home › Utah's Inherent Risks of Skiing Act, in plain English
Utah's Inherent Risks of Skiing Act is a short law with a big effect. Here is what it says, in plain English.
Call (801) 255-2102By Nuttall Brown & Coutts
It is a short Utah law that says skiers may not recover from a ski area operator for injuries caused by inherent risks of skiing. It lists those risks, such as snow conditions, trees, terrain features and collisions, and requires trail boards that list them.
The Legislature found that skiing is popular with Utah residents and visitors and important to the state's economy, and that few insurers were willing to cover ski areas. It said the purpose of the law is to clarify ski injury law, to establish that certain risks are inherent in skiing, and to provide that a skier may not recover from a ski operator for injuries from those inherent risks.
"Inherent risks of skiing" means dangers or conditions that are an integral part of recreational, competitive or professional skiing. The law lists examples: changing weather; snow or ice conditions, including hard pack, powder, crust, slush and machine-made snow; surface conditions such as bare spots, trees, rocks, stumps, streambeds and cliffs; variations or steepness in terrain, including from slope design, snowmaking or grooming, terrain parks and features; impact with lift towers, signs, posts, fences, hydrants or water pipes; collisions with other skiers; competitions and training; and a skier's failure to ski within their ability.
A "skier" is anyone in a ski area to ski, jump, or use skis, a sled, a tube, a snowboard or any other device. A "ski area operator" includes its agents, officers, employees and representatives.
A skier may not make a claim against, or recover from, a ski area operator for injury resulting from inherent risks of skiing. This applies even though Utah otherwise uses comparative fault.
Ski area operators must post trail boards at prominent places listing the inherent risks and the limits on their liability.
Utah's Supreme Court has interpreted the Act several times. Speaking generally, the court has focused on whether a particular danger is an integral part of the sport, and has recognized that not every danger at a ski area is automatically inherent. These cases turn on their own facts.
Utah's time limits can be short, sometimes a year or less, so call soon. Different rules can apply if a government entity, the federal government or defective equipment is involved. If construction or a defect in something built at the resort played a part, other businesses may be responsible, and different time limits can apply.
The Act bars claims against operators for inherent risks, and deadlines apply to every other claim. Whether something else was involved depends on the facts. A lawyer can review them with you.
Questions after a ski or resort injury?
Hurt at a Utah ski area, or caring for someone who was? Tell us what happened and ask for a free review. You decide what happens next.
