24 Hour Fitness Lawsuit Alleges Treadmill Malfunction Resulted in Serious Brain Injury

Complaint adds to a growing number of claims raising concerns about safety standards for gyms and other exercise equipment.

A California woman has filed a lawsuit against 24 Hour Fitness, alleging that the unsafe placement of a treadmill and a lack of adequate safeguards at one of the company’s gyms caused her husband to suffer a traumatic brain injury, leaving him permanently disabled and in need of round-the-clock care.

The complaint (PDF) was brought by Marwa Samadi, individually and as court-appointed conservator for her husband, Omidullah Rahmani, in the Superior Court of California, County of Sacramento on December 31. It names 24 Hour Fitness USA LLC and other unnamed entities involved in the design, installation or maintenance of the treadmill equipment as defendants.

The case adds to growing concerns over gym safety standards, equipment spacing, and whether fitness facilities are adequately following manufacturer guidelines intended to prevent catastrophic injuries during routine workouts.

A similar Planet Fitness lawsuit was filed in October 2025, claiming that a fitness center’s inappropriate placement of a weight machine led to severe injuries. In that case, the cable on an upright rowing machine snapped, sending a man flying backward into nearby gym equipment that had been placed too close to the device. The impact caused him to suffer a fractured rib, a fractured vertebra and a collapsed lung.

Other cases have raised concerns about the safety of the equipment itself rather than its placement. A NordicTrack lawsuit filed last year indicated that repairs made to one of that company’s products failed to fix the device, and instead led to a violent malfunction that sent its owner flying forward at full speed, causing injuries to her head, face and body.

According to Samadi’s filing, Rahmani was exercising at a 24 Hour Fitness location on Fulton Avenue in Sacramento, California on October 16, 2025, when the treadmill he was using abruptly malfunctioned and decelerated without warning, throwing him backward off the moving belt. The lawsuit alleges he struck the floor or nearby equipment positioned directly behind the treadmill, suffering severe head trauma.

Emergency responders transported Rahmani to Kaiser Permanente Sacramento Medical Center, where he underwent emergency brain surgery and was placed in a medically induced coma. The complaint states he remained hospitalized for more than five weeks and continues to suffer from profound neurological impairment, including an inability to speak, walk independently, recognize family members, or make decisions regarding his own care.

The lawsuit claims the injuries were not the result of an unavoidable accident. Rather, they stemmed from unsafe conditions inside the gym, which violated manufacturer safety requirements and industry standards. According to the complaint, treadmills at the facility were installed with only about three feet of rear clearance, despite manufacturer guidance and ASTM International standards recommending substantially larger safety zones to protect users who may be ejected from the belt.

Plaintiffs also allege that exercise equipment and other hard objects were placed within inches of the treadmill’s rear fall zone, and that the flooring behind the machines lacked adequate impact-attenuating properties to reduce the risk of head injury. Together, these conditions allegedly transformed a foreseeable treadmill misstep or malfunction into a life-altering event.

In addition to spacing issues, the complaint claims 24 Hour Fitness knew or should have known that treadmills at the facility were malfunctioning or poorly maintained, citing prior member complaints and maintenance issues. Despite that knowledge, the lawsuit alleges the company failed to remove unsafe equipment from service or correct known hazards.

The filing further contended that Rahmani could not have meaningfully understood or consented to the liability waivers he signed as part of his gym membership. According to the lawsuit, the documents were presented only in English, with no translation or explanation provided, even though his primary language is Pashto. The complaint also argued that liability waivers cannot shield a gym from claims involving gross negligence.

“While Mr. Rahmani may have assumed the ordinary and inherent risks associated with the proper use of a reasonably maintained and properly functioning treadmill, he did not assume the risk that Defendant would increase the danger beyond those inherent risks by permitting defective or poorly maintained treadmills to remain in service, ignoring known maintenance and safety obligations, or operating treadmills in violation of manufacturer safety requirements and ASTM International industry standards governing treadmill operation, placement, clearance, and rear safety zones.”

— Marwa Samadi et al v. 24 Hour Fitness USA LLC et al

As a result of the incident, Rahmani now requires total assistance for all daily activities, including feeding, mobility and personal care. The complaint estimates that his future medical and caregiving costs could reach several million dollars over the course of his lifetime. Samadi alleges she has been forced to stop working to provide full-time care for her husband while also raising their two young children.

The lawsuit raises claims of negligence, gross negligence, premises liability, negligence per se, strict product liability against unidentified equipment manufacturers, failure to warn, negligent infliction of emotional distress and loss of consortium. Samadi is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, arguing that 24 Hour Fitness consciously disregarded known safety requirements and placed members at unreasonable risk.

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