Bounce Australia fined $40,000 after child injured in 4m fall

A fall that saw a young boy break his sternum has proved costly for a Geelong indoor trampoline centre.

Bounce Australia in Grovedale. Picture: Alan Barber

A popular Geelong indoor trampoline centre will have to cough up almost $50,000 after a child fell off a climbing wall, with a court ruling a fine issued earlier was not enough.

Bounce Australia Pty Ltd was initially fined $12,500 without conviction in Geelong Magistrates Court in March this year, after pleading guilty to two counts of failing to ensure people other than employees were not exposed to risks to their health and safety.

The initial sentence was set aside last week on appeal, with the County Court instead ordering the company to pay $40,000 – more than three times the original amount – also without conviction.

The company was also ordered to pay $5557 in costs.

The court heard an 11-year-old boy and two friends were playing on the climbing area when the incident occurred in May, 2022.

Each climbing wall at the Torquay Rd business in Grovedale had an auto-belay system – a cable attached to a device at the top of the wall that automatically retracted as the climber moved up the surface.

Each climber had to unclip a carabiner that held the cable to a mat at the base of the wall and affix it to their harness.

After climbing, users would clip the carabiner back to the mat, ready for the next user.

The court heard that after two successful climbs, the friends went to a wall where they could race each other.

The mat at this climb was already on the floor and the auto-belay was retracted to the roof.

In his excitement to race his mates the boy didn’t notice, clambering up the wall, tapping the timer button and pushing himself off.

Instead of slowly being lowered down by the auto-belay, he plunged 4m from the top of the wall.

In hospital, he was diagnosed with a fractured sternum and soft-tissue injuries to his back.

A WorkSafe investigation found Bounce Australia did not have systems in place to ensure customers were adequately supervised in the climbing area, or advised of the safety rules before entering.

WorkSafe’s executive director of health and safety Sam Jenkin said expecting members of the public, particularly children, to perform a high-risk task without adequate supervision or a safety briefing was a recipe for disaster.

“What had been a fun day out turned into an absolute nightmare for this boy and his family, who should have been able to rely on Bounce to ensure there was proper supervision and instruction for the activities on offer,” Mr Jenkin said.

“Ensuring patrons are appropriately supervised, briefing customers on how to safely use equipment and ensuring children are accompanied by a parent or guardian are simple steps duty-holders should take to ensure they manage the inherent risks involved in indoor adventure activities.”

The court found there were a number of safety measures Bounce Australia could implement.

Originally published as Bounce Australia fined $40,000 after child injured in 4m fall