A cause of action for a swimming pool accident involving a child may arise from the violation of the Florida Statute requiring a barrier or safety fence to prevent access to the pool by an unsupervised child. Under the statute the property owner must meet the statutory barrier requirements to pass a final inspection and receive a certificate of completion. The barrier must contain the following characteristics:

• The barrier must be at least four feet high on the outside;
  
  

  The barrier may not have any gaps, openings, indentations, protrusions, or structural components that could allow a young child to crawl under, squeeze through, or climb over the barrier.

  The barrier must be placed around the perimeter of the pool and must be separate from any fence, wall, or other enclosure surrounding the yard unless the fence, wall, or other enclosure is situated on the perimeter of the pool, is being used as part of the barrier, and meets the barrier requirements.

  The barrier must be placed sufficiently away from the water's edge to prevent a young child who may have managed to penetrate the barrier from immediately falling into the water.

  
  A West Palm Beach child injury lawyer will advise a plaintiff that in addition to facing a civil liability if a property owner fails to follow the statutory requirements for a safety barrier, the defendant property owner may also face criminal charges. The failure to install a new residential swimming pool without at least one of the safety features prescribed by the statute, is a misdemeanor under Florida law.

  The West Palm Beach Child Injury law firm of Sharmin and Sharmin P.A. will work tirelessly to recover all compensation and damages your child and family deserves for an injury or death due to drowning in a swimming pool or other artificial body of water. Call Sharmin & Sharmin P.A. at 1-800-74-TRIAL.