Last updated 26th November 2025. Swimming pool accidents can cause serious, life-changing injuries, with slips and falls posing a particular risk of head trauma and spinal damage. No matter what injury you’ve suffered, you may be able to make a swimming pool accident claim if you were hurt due to the negligent actions of a third party.
Here at Legal Expert, we understand that a swimming pool injury can be hugely disruptive, particularly if it causes you to lose income. This uncertainty can add to the overall strain on daily life as you try to heal from your physical pain. At a time when your priority should be recovering, one of our expert solicitors can help you pursue swimming pool accident compensation for the physical, psychological, and financial impact of your injuries.
To find out more about claiming swimming pool accident compensation, please get in touch with our helpful, 24/7 team of advisors.
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Key Information
- What Type Of Injuries Can I Make A Swimming Pool Accident Claim For? Any injury sustained in the accident can be claimed for, including head trauma, fractures, paralysis, and psychological harm.
- What Commonly Causes A Swimming Pool Accident? Poorly maintained premises, damaged or loose poolside tiles, a lack of warning signs, and insufficiently trained lifeguards are common causes of swimming pool accidents.
- Who Would Be Liable For My Swimming Pool Injury? Generally, the party that owns or controls the public space where the swimming pool is located can be held liable if their negligent actions caused your injury.
- What Evidence Can Prove My Injuries? You can use medical records, accident incident reports, and CCTV footage from the swimming pool.
- Can I Claim Back Financial Losses? Compensation in swimming pool accident claims can cover the financial impact of your injuries, including lost income, medical expenses, and modifications made to your home or vehicle.
What Is A Swimming Pool Accident Claim and Am I Eligible?
A swimming pool accident claim is a form of legal action that you can take if you’ve suffered an injury while using a pool or the surrounding premises, like changing rooms.
You can make a swimming pool accident claim if you can prove negligence occurred. Negligence is when:
- You were owed a duty of care.
- Someone breached that duty.
- That breach caused your injuries.
The Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 places a duty of care on anyone who controls a public space. They must, within reason, make sure everyone in that space is safe.
In other words, someone who owns or controls a swimming pool must keep you safe in or around that pool. If you are injured for reasons that could have been avoided, the person is likely negligent. In that case, you can make a public liability claim.
To claim for a swimming pool accident, contact our team today using the details at the top of this guide.
Common Causes Of Swimming Pool Accident Claims
As discussed above, if the individual or organisation in charge of the swimming pool facilities were negligent, you could claim compensation. Here are a few examples of swimming pool accidents that could lead to a claim:
- A pool manager cleans the water without measuring the chlorine and uses too much. You swim in the water and suffer chemical burns.
- Your local pool is partly drained for maintenance, making the water too shallow for diving. No warning sign is put out. You perform a high dive and receive a serious neck injury.
- A child spills a drink next to the pool. Staff do not clean this within a reasonable time, and you slip and fall and fracture a forearm.
- Illnesses caused by poor hygiene
- A broken tile catches your leg as you get into the pool, incurring significant laceration and scarring.
- A large ceiling light has not been properly installed. It falls on you as you swim, causing a minor injury to your back.
To know if your accident could lead to a swimming pool accident claim, get in touch via the details above.
Can I Claim For A Swimming Pool Accident As An Employee?
You can make a swimming pool accident claim as an employee if the accident was caused by a negligent employer.
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 places a duty of care on employers to take reasonable and practicable steps to keep their staff safe. There are various ways in which an employer can be negligent, including failing to provide correct oversight, training, or Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
- You are the only lifeguard on duty, yet your employer insists that you teach a swimming class. You fall and fracture your skull with no one around to help.
- You are hired to fix a pool vent, but your supervisor does not update you that the whole pump system needs replacing. Your hand gets caught in the faulty machinery, requiring partial finger amputation.
If you are unsure if your accident was the fault of your employer, our advisors can help. Get in touch with the details at the top of the page.
Can I Claim For A Swimming Pool Accident On Behalf Of My Child?
If your child has been injured in a swimming pool accident, you have two options.
- Wait until they turn eighteen, at which point they can make their own claim.
- Request that you be appointed their litigation friend. A litigation friend is a trusted parent or guardian who claims on behalf of a child.
Both actions trigger a three-year time limit under the Limitation Act 1980. After those three years, the claim will become time-barred. This means you cannot claim anymore.
If you make a swimming pool accident claim on your own behalf, your three years start from the date of your accident.
Contact us if you’re not sure whether you still claim. Our advisors are available 24/7 via the details at the top of this guide.
How Much Compensation Can You Claim For Swimming Pool Accidents?
Damages are paid to a person who successfully makes a swimming pool accident claim. There are two types of damages:
- General damages are paid to compensate for pain and suffering caused by the swimming pool accident.
- Special damages are paid to restore material loss caused by your swimming injuries.
General damages will depend on the type and severity of your injuries. The Judicial College sets out compensation for different injuries in the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). The table below provides some examples.
Please note that the top figure is for demonstration and is not a JCG figure. This table is only intended to act as a guide.
| Injury | Compensation Guideline |
|---|---|
| Multiple severe injuries plus special damages | Up to £1,000,000 or more |
| Very severe brain injury needing full time nursing care | £344,150 to £493,000 |
| Severe (ii) neck injuries usually involving cervical damage and that cause permanent disability | £80,240 to £159,770 |
| Moderate (i) neck injuries that cause severe symptoms and may need spinal fusion | £30,500 to £46,970 |
| Burns to 40% or more of the body | Likely more than £127,930 |
| Several lacerations or one disfiguring scar | £9,560 to £27,740 |
| Severe (iii) back injuries including vertebral damage that leaves disabilities that cannot be fixed with treatment | £47,320 to £85,100 |
| Arm injuries causing permanent disability | £47,810 to £73,050 |
| Less severe but more than simple arm injuries | £23,430 to £47,810 |
| Poisoning severe (i) enough to negatively affect life and work in the long-term | £46,900 to £64,070 |
Can I Claim For Loss of Earnings Caused By A Swimming Accident?
Special damages recover material losses caused by the injuries. So long as you can prove the loss and show your injuries are the cause, you can claim for special damages.
You prove loss of earnings by providing payslips, sick notes, pension letters, or other relevant documents. Other examples of special damages are:
- Wages for a carer or other domestic help.
- The cost of installing a ramp or other accessibility adjustments.
- Private medical expenses or related travel costs.
As with loss of earnings, each of these would require invoices, quotations, or other proof.
Ask our advisors if we can help you with loss of earnings via the methods listed above.
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How Do You Prove A Swimming Pool Accident Claim?
A swimming pool accident claim requires evidence of negligence. This will usually include:
- Media – The Data Protection Act 2018 allows you to request any CCTV or phone recordings of the accident, so long as you appear in them.
- Witness Contact Details – inform your solicitor if anyone saw your accident happen, as they can help to support the facts of your case.
- Medical Reports – GP notes, rehab records, or the statement of a relevant expert can link your injuries to the incident in question.
- Expert Opinion – someone with provable expertise can speak to factual questions such as what duty of care you were owed.
- Incident Reports – anyone who employs ten staff or more must keep a record of workplace accidents under The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR).
Our solicitors can gather this evidence for you. To know how, call us today. You can find our phone number at the top of this page.
Claim For A Swimming Pool Injury On A No Win No Fee Basis
You could have the right to claim compensation after a swimming pool accident, and our solicitors are here to help. They are ready to assist with expertise that can only be built over decades of success, providing:
- High-quality advice for your unique situation.
- Guidance on the latest legal know-how.
- Resources to gather the strongest evidence possible.
- The best possible chance of success.
Our solicitors can work for you on a No Win No Fee basis if you sign a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). With this method, you:
- Pay an agreed and legally capped percentage of the compensation awarded if you win.
- Pay nothing if you lose.
- Enjoy peace of mind knowing there are no upfront or ongoing costs for your claim.
This way, you have nothing to lose. Get in touch. Claim the compensation you deserve.
- Call us anytime 24/7 on 0800 073 8804.
- Use this form to make a claim online.
- Use the instant chat feature at the bottom of this page.
Learn More About How To Make Personal Injury Claims
Here are some further resources from us you may find helpful:
- Accident at Work Claims – our guide on what you can do wherever you work.
- Holiday Accident Claims – have you been injured in a pool accident in Spain?
- Supermarket Accident Claims – how public liability works in shops.
Here is some more reading from around the web:
- Guidance on RIDDOR from the Health and Safety Executive for reporting accidents.
- Water Safety in Residential Swimming Pools – advice from the Royal Life Saving Society UK.
- Swimming Pool Safety – a useful legal summary by the Isle of Wight local authority.
Thank you for reading our guide on how to make a swimming pool accident claim.