While I was on vacation a few weeks ago, I finally got to go to a trampoline park that was open. I won’t say whose software they were using, other than to say that they were not using CenterEdge Software. What I will say is that I was stunned at how they managed their liability waivers. For example, after paying for admission, the cashier asked if we had filled out waivers before. I said no, but I am certain that if I had said yes, I would have been able to jump without completing a waiver. So I filled out a paper waiver but he never so much as glanced at it before filing it away.
As the owner or manager of a trampoline park, you know that managing the waiver process is absolutely essential. If someone got hurt and didn’t have a valid waiver on file, you could lose your insurance, face enormous lawsuit damages or even be forced to file bankruptcy. You can’t afford to take those risks, so what can you do to ensure that every customer has a valid waiver? How can having the right trampoline park software help?
Customer Convenience
Put simply, customers don’t want to sign waivers. It’s not that they are concerned about giving up any rights but instead that they don’t want to spend 60 seconds filling one out. So you need to make it as painless as possible by giving your customers as many ways to fill out a waiver as you can.
Of course you should have paper waivers available on site, but there are three other good options. You should offer a blank waiver PDF online, so that they can print one and complete it before leaving home. If your trampoline park software offers the option, you should offer the ability to complete the waiver (including digitally “signing” it) online. Finally, you should install waiver kiosks in your facility. This allows your customers to complete their waivers electronically before they ever get to your cashiers. These methods will make it easier for your customers to complete waivers, so they should be more likely to do so. And, as an added bonus, these methods will keep your lines moving quickly.
Identification
When a customer fills out a waiver, they are cleared to jump, right? Not exactly. How do you know that the information on the waiver is correct? If you just accept their waiver (either paper or electronic) without reviewing it first, they could have put anything on it. You certainly wouldn’t want someone to get hurt only to find out that they had used the name Donald Duck on their waiver.
Even if your cashier reviews the waiver to make sure that it was filled out correctly, you don’t know if your customer is who they say they are. If the customer is an adult, you should ask to see their ID, make sure that they look like the person in the photograph and verify that the name and other information on the ID matches the waiver in your trampoline park software. If the customer is a minor, you should verify the parent’s identification. Is this a hassle? Absolutely. Unfortunately, if you want to protect yourselves, it is a necessary hassle.
Verification
When a new customer comes to jump for the first time, you know they have a valid waiver because you just reviewed it and checked their ID. But what happens when a customer says they’ve filled out a waiver in the past? If you trust them and don’t verify this, you are taking a huge risk. Even if they have filled one out, how long ago was it? Many trampoline parks have waivers that expire after a certain amount of time, typically one year.
The best way to manage this is using trampoline park software that also manages waivers. When a customer buys an admission, the point of sale system should require that the admission be linked to a customer. That way, it can determine if the customer has a valid waiver on file. And if your waivers expire, the software can also verify that the waiver isn’t expired. Even still, you should check their ID to make sure that they aren’t using someone else’s waiver.
Liability waivers seem relatively simple, but when your entire business relies on them, it is worth taking the time to make sure that there are no gaps in the system. You should be confident that there is no way for a customer to be in your trampoline park without a valid liability waiver on file. If you aren’t, it’s time to take a step back and evaluate how you manage waivers.
If you’d like to learn more about how CenterEdge Software can help you manage the waiver process, give us a call at (336) 598-5934 or click below to schedule an online demo.
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