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Understanding fault when a guest suffers an injury at a hotel

On Behalf of | Sep 10, 2021 | Personal Injury and Wrongful Death |

Whether traveling for business or pleasure, checking into and staying at a hotel comes with expectations for safety. Hotel guests don’t want their stay to end with an injury, but accidents happen. Sometimes injuries occur due to negligence, and the hotel’s management or staff might be at fault. However, there are instances in which guests may suffer injuries not by fault of the hotel.

A responsibility to care for guests

Premises liability statutes emphasize that property owners and managers have a duty to address hazards. When a hotel starts to suffer from neglect, guests might find themselves facing dangers. A hotel’s parking lot might displays cracks and other problems caused by years of weather extremes. If the hotel’s management does not fix the disrepair, the business may face liability claims.

When those in charge ignore apparent hazards, they could expect to face litigation for any resulting accidents. Not moving quick enough to clean up a spill near the hotel bar might lead to a negligence claim. The same legal logic may apply to poor lighting in stairways, as reduced lighting could also result in a slip-and-fall mishap.

Liability and hotel mishaps

Injuries suffered at hotels might not always be the hotel’s fault. A drunken guest could injure someone by accident, although the hotel might share some responsibility. Not evicting a potentially dangerous guest from the premises might be partial negligence.

Hotel guests may suffer harm in many ways, including injuries at unattended swimming pools, infections from uncleanly surfaces, illnesses from spoiled food, among other dangers. Ultimately, when someone suffers an injury, questions arise about whether the hotel could have prevented or foreseen it. If liable, a hotel may face a civil judgment.

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