Protect Your Range With Digital Shooting Sports Waivers

Firearms and other projectile weapons inherently involve extreme risks, even when strict safety protocols are enforced. Common risks include:

• Accidental discharge
• Ricochets
• Equipment malfunction
• Theft of unsecured property

A waiver is a critical legal contract in which the shooter acknowledges these unique risks and agrees not to hold the facility liable. 

Having a waiver that has been approved by a lawyer is essential for protecting your business and informing participants of safety risks. Waivers are also almost always required by your facility's liability insurance provider.

To be legally effective, your waiver must include: 

• Assumption of Risk clause: This should detail specific dangers associated with visiting a range or participating in other shooting sports. 
• Release of Liability: This is the core legal clause in the waiver. By agreeing to this clause, the participant is affirming that they will not sue your business for injuries or damages that occur as a result of ordinary negligence.
• Indemnification agreement: This clause states that if your business is sued due to the participant’s actions or involvement, they will be financially responsible for your legal costs.
• Declaration of Eligibility: The participant affirms that they are not prohibited from owning firearms (e.g., they do not have felony convictions) and are not under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Have a lawyer draft and grant final approval of the waiver to ensure it is legally sound and in compliance with all local regulations.

Absolutely. A well-drafted shooting sports waiver should explicitly list environmental hazards associated with indoor and outdoor shooting sports. 

By explicitly detailing risks such as exposure to lead dust, hearing loss from loud noises, and eye injuries from ejected brass, you ensure the shooter formally assumes the risk of these issues. Here’s what this might look like in a waiver:

"I fully understand and acknowledge that participating in shooting sports involves inherent exposure to specific environmental and physical hazards, including but not limited to: high-decibel noise levels that may result in permanent hearing damage; the ejection of hot brass shell casings that can cause burns or eye injuries; and exposure to airborne lead dust, toxic fumes, and other hazardous matter."

Weekends at the range or check-in at a shooting sports event can have long wait times. Digital waivers allow customers to read and sign the agreement on their personal devices before they even leave home to skip the lines.

When they arrive, your Range Safety Officers (RSOs) or front desk staff can simply look up their name in your database and verify that they signed the waiver. This eliminates the bottlenecks that can occur when requiring each participant to read and sign a paper form at check-in.

No, minors cannot legally agree to the terms in a contract. If your range allows youth shooters, a legally recognized parent or guardian must sign on behalf of the minor. To manage this, include a specific "Parental Consent" or "Guardian Release" section in the waiver. This way, the adult accepts the risks and legally takes responsibility for supervising the minor while on the firing line.

Yes, incorporating core safety rules into your waiver can strengthen your legal position if an incident occurs. Include a clause where the participant explicitly agrees to follow posted range rules and immediately obey all commands from the RSO. Add another clause stating that if a participant fails to comply, they will be immediately ejected from the property without a refund.