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While family entertainment centers cannot completely prevent injuries from happening, they can take active steps to reduce the rate of injury and minimize the damage. Knowledge of the “danger zones” is a key tool for facility owners, managers, and staff members.
Funworld asked C.J. Mills, vice president of client services for American Specialty Insurance & Risk Services Inc. in Roanoke, Indiana, to rank the top 10 FEC danger zones by frequency of claims as well as potential impact on the facility.
“Oftentimes, there’s a larger concern with frequency than severity,” he explains. “Frequency speaks more to an operational problem. Accidents happen, but continual accidents in the same space can maybe suggest more negligence than accident.”
Ranking (Based on Frequency)
10. Inappropriate behavior (No. 3 for impact).
9. Rock wall (No. 2 for impact)
8. Zip lines (No. 1 for impact) For all three of these claim types, they don’t take place often, but when they do, you’re looking at a substantial dollar amount, Mills warns.
7. Batting cages (No. 4 for impact) The frequency has dropped here thanks to better equipment and more FECs following manufacturer guidelines he says.
6. Food and restaurant (No. 10 for impact) These claims have increased due to the number of FECs adding food operations to their facilities, Mills says.
5. Kiddie rides (No. 9 for impact) Here, bumped heads and load in/load out issues dominate the claims, he says.
4. Go-karts (No. 6 for impact) “You get a lot of throughput so it’s not surprising you have frequency there,” Mills explains.
3. Property related—outdoors (No. 8 for impact) Mills has seen a spike in property-related and outdoor claims in recent years due to the “interesting” weather across the country. These range anywhere from freak ice storms taking down batting cage netting and poles to lightning strikes.
2. Inflatables (No. 5 for impact) “It’s not surprising you’ll see claims when you get kids jumping around in a confined space,” he says. “But there is a way to manage those, and a lot of those inflatable franchise operations have fantastic procedures and minimize the frequency and impact of claims.”
1. Slips, trips, and falls (No. 7 for impact) “Not all FECs have inflatables, go-karts, or zip lines, but every single one has a common area,” Mills says. This fact makes slips, trips, and falls the top claim in terms of frequency. “They’re not big dollar claims, but they do add up.”
React, Respond, and Prevent
As a front-line defense against accidents, Mills recommends that managers take daily “POWER walks” through their facility:
Property check: Look around with a careful eye for any red flags.
Observe employee behavior: Evaluate your staff regularly.
Well-being checkup:Take the temperature of your employees. How are they doing? Do they look tired, engaged, bored?
Encounter with your customers: Ask how their day is going. If they have an issue or witness a problem, they will probably tell you.
Reward excellence: If you see employees going the extra mile from a safety and guest service standpoint, recognize them on the spot and during the next staff meeting.
Common Mistakes Mills offers three frequent errors in times of an incident and their respective solutions:
Lack of documentation: “Always go on the safe side and put everything in writing,” he says. For example, some people may not think a bee sting constitutes a major issue. But what if you have four or five stings in one area, which would likely point to a nest? A paper trail would help to bring this issue to light and possibly prevent a serious (and perhaps life-threatening) allergic reaction from occurring.
Educate staff: Make sure front-line employees know what to say and how to react after an incident occurs. Do not admit fault or announce to the world, “This happens all the time.” Instead, take care of the guest until the manager arrives, Mills says.
Do not fear your insurance carrier: Some managers worry that just submitting an incident report to your insurance company will increase your premium. That’s not necessarily true. An incident is not a claim. Also, turning in an incident report to your insurance provider will help protect you from a “blind suit.” “You can have a claim sit out there for five or 10 years before it gets reported,” Mills says. “You don’t remember what happened, and the person who took the report may have moved across the country and you have no idea how to get a hold of him.”
Contact Contributing Editor Mike Bederka at mbederka@IAAPA.org.
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