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Legal Eagle

Miscellaneous

Q: TV contestants rights

What recourse of action does a reality TV contestant have if they think their life has been adversely affected by appearing on a show?

A: Very probably none but I cannot advise definitively without seeing the terms of the contract between the contestant and the producer. However, I would fully expect such contract to contain a disclaimer of liability for any claim of the kind you mention.

I would expect the programme producer to have taken legal advice, in which case the contract will doubtless have described all the risks undertaken by contestants in the programme, including those which are stress-related. Such a contract should have excluded liability on the part of the producer for all claims arising out of any such risks so that the contestant is made to understand that he or she participates in the programme at his or her own risk.

Possibly the claimant might seek to suggest that any contractual disclaimer is overridden by an oral misrepresentation or collateral warranty given by or on behalf of the programme producer to the contestant prior to the contract whereunder the contestant agreed to participate in the programme. Whether any such representation or collateral warranty was given and, if so, whether it was breached, will depend on the evidence in each individual case. Again, the contract may contain an acknowledgement by the contestant that no such representations or warranties were given, or if given are not relied on by the contestant and that any liability which would otherwise arise out of same is excluded. Any exclusion of liability for misrepresentation is only effective in law insofar as such exclusion is reasonable in the circumstances but I would expect it to be regarded as reasonable in a case such as this.

Furthermore, my understanding is that in most, if not all such programmes, any contestant is free to leave at any time and for any reason and this is a factor which would further militate against any claim.

In the absence of any of the above factors applying, it is possible that a contestant might be able to obtain compensation for ill-health caused by stress as a result of appearing in the programme if the contestant could show that the contract was a contract of employment governed by employment law but I would not expect the contestant to be able to do so because how the contestant conducted himself or herself on the programme was a matter for the contestant and was not controlled by the producer.

Furthermore, I would expect the producer to have taken care to ensure that the contract did not contain the essential characteristics of a contract of employment. Health and Safety Regulations may apply to the actual shooting and physical safety of the programme and there will be a duty of care in negligence in relation to any dangerous activities, although again liability for negligence may be excluded by contractual disclaimer and give rise to argument about the disclaimer's enforcebility.

In any event stress claims against an employer are extremely difficult to prove and cannot be based on the nature of the work which the employee agreed voluntarily to undertake.

First published 3rd July 2003