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August 22, 2022
The last thing you should be worried about when staying at a hotel is getting injured. Whether you are on vacation or taking a work trip, hotel guests should never be put in harm’s way unnecessarily.
Unfortunately, accidents do sometimes happen. If you are injured while staying at a hotel, you may be able to file a claim against the property owners or other responsible party.
LegalFinders can connect you to a personal injury lawyer, who can help you determine who was at fault during a hotel accident and help you collect any damages that might be rightfully owed to you as a result of the accident.
Following an injury on hotel premises, a law firm can help you determine what your options are for legal action.
What type of claim or lawsuit you file will be determined by a number of factors, including who is liable for your accident.
Personal injury claims allow individuals to make a claim for compensation for injuries that occur as the result of negligence on someone else’s behalf.
A personal injury claim is a great option for people who have accidents at hotels due to hotel negligence or dangerous conditions on the hotel grounds.
A successful personal injury claim must first prove that someone else is at fault for your injury, then determine the damages that have occurred as a result of the injury.
In the case of an injury that occurs on hotel grounds, the type of personal injury claim that you will file will most likely be something called a premises liability lawsuit.
Like other types of personal injury claims, the goal of a premises liability lawsuit is to prove that negligence was at play and responsible for an injury that occurred.
This type of lawsuit is applicable in cases where negligence by the property owner, which could look like failure to maintain or care for certain premises within reason, was responsible for an injury.
Simply being injured on hotel grounds does not mean the property owner was negligent or at fault. A successful lawsuit will need to show that the property owner was aware or should have been aware of dangerous conditions on the property which led to an injury.
A hotel injury lawyer can help you determine whether negligence was at play in your injury, and demonstrate how that negligence led to an accident and why you should be compensated for any resulting damages.
Getting injured on hotel grounds does not immediately mean that the hotel or its owners are liable for the accident.
Most states have laws that require that property owners care for and maintain their properties to keep them reasonably safe and clean. These laws and requirements do sometimes vary from state to state. Duties of hotels may include such tasks as:
If, for example, a fall accident occurs on a staircase that has been properly maintained and cleaned, a premises liability case might be unsuccessful in proving that the hotel was liable.
On the other hand, if a serious injury occurred due to a swimming pool accident and there was a missing guardrail that the hotel was expected to have in place, the hotel might be held liable for the accident.
The primary job of a personal injury attorney is to determine that another party was responsible for an injury and prove that responsibility to a court.
In the case of hotel injuries, the three main steps in this process are to demonstrate that the hotel has breached its duty of care to guests, show how this breach was negligent, and prove that the negligence led to the injury.
Hotel owners have a duty, under law, to care for and maintain the premises in a way that keeps them safe for guests and people on the grounds.
The first step in determining liability in a hotel injury case is to figure out whether the injury happened as a result of the hotel or its owners breaching their duty to care for the property.
When there is a breach of duty of care on the part of the hotel, there is often negligence at play also. Negligence occurs when property owners are aware that an issue exists or should be aware, but do nothing to fix the issue or protect guests against it.
Establishing negligence is a necessary step in a successful liability case, and premises liability attorneys are experts at doing so.
The final step in a hotel accident case is proving that negligence not only led to the accident, but also contributed to the resulting injury.
Hotel accident attorneys will build a case that clearly demonstrates how negligence led to an accident, and how the injury that happened during the accident was also a result of the negligence.
This critical connection is what ultimately leads to liability to be placed on the hotel and allows for damages to be collected.
Hotels can sometimes be held liable for harm done by their employees, under a law called ‘vicarious liability’.
This law makes a hotel liable for harmful actions of their employees if they are done “within the scope of employment”.
Even if a hotel did not explicitly sanction the employee’s harmful actions or have supervision over them, they might still be held liable.
If an employee harms someone through an intentional act, however, it is unlikely that the hotel will be liable for their actions under vicarious liability.
There are several types of injuries that could occur on hotel property, including:
Most hotels have liability insurance which helps them settle and pay damages to accident victims who file a premises liability claim against the hotel.
The insurance companies will usually work to reach a settlement with the injured party before the case reaches court.
If your case does go to court, you will want to have the best possible hotel accident lawyer. A top-rated lawyer will help to ensure that the hotel is held liable for any negligence and that you are properly compensated for your injury and the resulting damages.
There are a lot of ways that a person could get injured on hotel grounds as a result of negligence on the property owner’s behalf. From falls to food poisoning, these are the most common types of hotel injury claims:
Swimming pool injuries are among the most common accidents that occur at hotels. Injuries might include head injuries or drowning.
A hotel could be liable for swimming pool injuries for a number of reasons, including inadequate signage or disclaimers stating dangers, failure to maintain fencing or other safety precautions in and around the pool, etc.
Injuries resulting from a slip or fall are common on hotel grounds. The hotel might be liable for such injuries due to a wet floor without signage, uneven flooring or carpeting, damaged stairs, etc.
Burns sometimes happen on hotel grounds. These could result from a fire on the premises, a spa that is too hot, or even scalding water in the shower.
When eating at a hotel restaurant or ordering room service, you should never be subjected to food that is spoiled or that makes you sick.
If food poisoning does occur at a hotel, the hotel might be held liable.
Sometimes, assault or other criminal activity can occur on hotel grounds due to the premises being unsecured.
Depending on local laws, it is usually the duty of the hotel to ensure that their grounds are secure and free of intruders. An assault on hotel property may be the fault of the hotel itself.
When you are injured, it may affect your life in a number of ways. In a hotel injury case, these effects are assessed as different types of damages.
Damages from a hotel injury may include economic impacts to your life such as lost wages or medical bills, as well as emotional or physical effects like pain and suffering. You can seek compensation for all of these damages.
Lost wages occur when someone is injured and unable to work. Damages for lost wages may include income itself, as well as lost benefits like 401k earnings or health insurance.
In cases where an injury prevents someone from working or limits their capacity to work, especially in the long-term, damages may include lost earning capacity. Attorneys can help you accurately calculate how much you are owed in damages in such cases.
If you are unfortunate enough to be injured at a hotel, medical expenses could be high. Damages can include costs for both current and projected medical bills that are a result of your injury.
Injuries can impact your life in multiple ways. Both mental and physical effects can last for months or even years after the initial injury.
Damages for pain and suffering aim to compensate individuals for some of the more obscure effects of their injury.
In the highly unfortunate case of a catastrophic injury that leads to death, family members or someone filing on the deceased individual’s behalf may seek wrongful death damages.
A hotel premises liability lawyer can help you build a strong case and receive the highest possible amount of damages for your claim.
The first and most critical job of a personal injury attorney is to help you to determine and prove who was liable for your accident.
If it is determined that the hotel was liable, you and your attorney can move forward with your case.
Your attorney will help you by assessing all of the ways your life has been impacted by your injury and using this information to calculate the appropriate amount of damages.
When you hire an attorney to handle a premises liability case, they will assume all responsibility for legal communications surrounding the case.
Your attorney will act as the middleman between you and the responsible party. The best lawyers prioritize the attorney-client relationship by communicating clearly and promptly on all matters of the case.
Your lawyer will use all the information they have compiled to prove that a hotel’s negligence led to your injuries (if this is determined to be the case), and work to get you the best compensation for your damages.
By compiling all the necessary evidence to show that the injuries resulted from the hotel’s negligence, your attorney can leverage your position to ensure that you are compensated adequately for the accident and resulting damages.
A hotel injury lawyer can help you or a loved one get the compensation you deserve if you were injured on hotel grounds due to unsafe conditions.
Many attorneys offer free consultations and may even charge contingency fees, meaning you pay nothing if your case does not result in compensation.
LegalFinders helps you to find the best possible hotel injury lawyer to handle your case. Contact us today to learn more.
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Published: 22 August 2022
Legal Information Institute — Pain and Suffering
Legal Information Institute — Vicarious Liability
