Safety of active entertainment

Active entertainment is a service

• where an activity is offered by an organiser to one or more consumers for the purposes of amusement and/or recreation;
• in which the consumer must participate actively;
• which involves physical exertion for the participant;
• in which the participant must draw on certain knowledge, skills or techniques in order to carry out the activity safely.

These are activities such as climbing, go-karting, kayaking, caving, horse-riding etc.

Entertainment activities that are not covered are:

• activities as part of youth activity initiatives recognised by the authorities;
• activities organised by a sports club or sports association or sports federation for their members, as part of their normal sporting activity

When hosting an event of this kind, various organisational aspects need to be borne in mind, as well as the safety of the event. A well designed safety plan will help you to organise a safe event or sports activity and comply with legislation.

Laws and regulations

Conditions for organising an active entertainment activity

Notification requirement

Laws and regulations

An event can only take place if it meets the essential requirements set forth in the law of 9 February 1994 on the safety of products and services.

For active entertainment, the requirements of this law are further developed and supplemented by the Royal Decree of 25 April 2004 concerning the organisation of active entertainment.

Entertainment activities not covered by these regulations are:   

• activities as part of youth activity initiatives recognised by the authorities;
• activities organised by a sports club or sports association or sports federation for their members, as part of their normal sporting activity.

Conditions for organising an active entertainment activity

To meet the safety requirements for organising an active entertainment activity, you must follow these steps:

• the organiser conducts a risk assessment;
• the organiser establishes preventive measures;
• the organiser applies these preventive measures;
• the organiser appoints a person in charge who is present for the duration of the active entertainment activity;
• the organiser takes steps to ensure that participants and third parties are not exposed to unacceptable risk.

Consumers and users must have access to the following information:

• the organiser’s name and address;
• the type of knowledge, skills or techniques required;
• other relevant information.

Note that the disclaimer ‘Use at your own risk’, or any other similar disclaimer, is prohibited.

Notification requirement

Any serious incident or accident occurring to a participant or third party during the active entertainment activity must be reported immediately to the central contact point.

A serious accident is a fatality or an accident that causes or could cause permanent injury.

A serious incident is an incident that results or could result in a serious accident.