While you stay at a hotel for a vacation or work, you expect your stay to be uneventful and relaxing. However, an unfortunate accident can ruin your plans for relaxation or productivity during your stay at a hotel. When you slip and fall, you might sustain a serious physical injury that can interfere with your plans and might leave you incapacitated and unable to work or relax for quite some time.
In the aftermath of a slip and fall at a hotel, it is natural to wonder whether you can pursue a lawsuit against the hotel. An injury lawsuit against the negligent party at the hotel can help you obtain financial compensation for your physical and financial damages.
Causes of Hotel Slip and Fall Accidents
Unsafe conditions like low or absent lighting, broken tiles, slippery or wet floors, loose carpeting, broken stairs, tripping hazards, etc., are some of the most common causes of hotel slip and fall accidents. Since the hotel is responsible for creating and maintaining a safe space for its customers, such accidents usually result from the negligence of the hotel administration or staff.
Slip and fall accidents at a hotel can cause several different injuries, ranging from bruises and superficial cuts to bone fractures, sprains, joint dislocation, Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBIs), etc. Injuries resulting from hotel slip and fall accidents carry a significant risk of disability and death.
Determining Liability
To obtain financial compensation through a personal injury lawsuit, it is essential to prove that the accident did not result from your negligence. You can pursue a lawsuit against the hotel owner or employees if you are successful in proving their negligence in a court of law.
To hold the hotel administration or staff liable for your slip and fall injury, it is essential to prove the following facts under the Premises Liability Law:
- The hotel owes all visitors and guests a certain duty of care. The hotel violated this duty of care through the creation of unsafe conditions that resulted in the accident.
- The hotel administration or staff knew or should have known about said conditions.
- The hotel administration or staff were negligent in taking appropriate measures to remove the danger.
Comparative Negligence
In addition to the duty of care owed by the hotel, the guests and visitors at the hotel must also act responsibly. In some cases, the victims of hotel slips and falls might share part of the blame for the accident. Under such circumstances, the amount of compensation received through the lawsuit gets reduced proportionally to the percentage of the victim’s liability for the slip and fall accident.
Hiring an Experienced Attorney
It is essential to hire an experienced injury attorney to represent you in a hotel slip and fall lawsuit. A lawyer will guide you throughout the complicated legal process and help you obtain fair compensation for your physical, financial, and emotional damages. Most reputable law firms offer a free initial legal consultation to victims of slip and fall accidents. A legal consultation can assist you in exploring your options, including filing a personal injury lawsuit.
