Hotel Negligence

When people come to visit Florida on vacation, they will likely spend a good deal of time in a hotel. No one likes to think that a vacation may be disrupted by a major injury or accident, but mishaps do frequently occur at hotels and resorts. When an accident does occur on hotel or resort property, the main question is whether or not the hotel bears responsibility or blame for the accident.

If the accident or injury was caused by the hotel or resort’s negligence, then legally they can be held responsible for the accident. It can be complicated to determine the cause of the accident and the appropriate laws and damages that apply. You need to contact Florida personal injury lawyers immediately if you or a loved one is injured on hotel or resort premises.

Florida Hotel Negligence Attorneys

Lisa Levine is a personal injury and medical malpractice attorney dedicated to representing clients who have been harmed by another’s negligent behavior. She has been featured on Good Morning American and NBC News and she is also an advocate for women’s health issues.

Mark Glassman is a personal injury and medical malpractice attorney who has worked as an expert witness in malpractice cases. He specializes in personal injury and medical practice litigation. Mark Glassman also focuses a lot on injuries resulting from defective and dangerous drugs and injuries cause by another’s negligent behavior.

The attorneys of Levine & Glassman are fully-versed in personal injury law and can help you receive the best possible compensation for the damages suffered after being the victim of a negligent hotel accident.

Hotel Negligence Information Center

• Common Types of Hotel Accidents
• General List of Hotel Responsibilities and Duties to Guests
• Hotel’s Liability for Natural Disasters
• Hotel Responsibility for Personal Belongings
• Types of Negligent Security at Hotels
• Right to Evict Guests
• Hotel Duty to Non-guests
• How we can Help

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Common Types of Hotel Accidents

• Insect infestation such as bed bugs
• Criminal assaults that occur in areas of hotels without proper security lighting security guards.
• Assaults by hotel staff due to negligent hiring.
• Drowning or other accidents at pools with insufficiently trained lifeguards or no lifeguards at all.
• Slip and fall accidents caused by negligent conditions not taken care of by the hotel.
• Injuries caused by poorly maintained recreational equipment supplied by the hotel.
• Food poisoning and other food borne illnesses
• Staircase or stairwell accidents
• Elevator or escalator accidents

Resorts have a duty to maintain their property in a reasonably safe condition. The hotel is in the best position to know about possible hazards located on their property because the guests are there only temporarily. The hotel should quickly repair dangerous conditions or post warnings and take proper precautions to protect guests from getting injured. Most or all of the accidents and injuries that occur at hotels can be prevented with proper maintenance oversight of the property.

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General List of Hotel Responsibilities and Duties to Guests

• Hotels have a general duty to exercise "reasonable care" for the safety and security of their guests.
• Hotels have a general duty to reasonably protect guests from harm caused by other guests or non-guests.
• Hotels have an affirmative duty to make the premises reasonably safe for their guests. This obligation includes a two-fold duty either to correct a hazard or warn of its existence. The hotel must not only address visible hazards but must make apparent hidden dangers or hazards.
• Hotels are generally liable for damages if they cannot honor a confirmed reservation because of "overbooking."

Things that hotels are usually not responsible for include:

• Hotels are not liable for every accident or loss that occurs on the premises, nor do they insure the absolute safety of every guest.
• Hotels are not liable for harm to person or property unless "fault" can be established against the hotel.
• Hotels may generally sue for damages or retain deposits if confirmed reservations are not honored by prospective guests.
• Hotels may generally evict registered guests for a variety of well-established reasons.
• Hotels may retain personal possessions of evicted guests as security for room charges.
• Hotels are generally not liable for valuables that are not secured in the hotel safe, if conspicuous notice is posted.
• Hotels are generally not liable for harm to guests caused by criminal acts of others, unless hotel fault is established.
• Hotels may generally limit their liability for losses if conspicuous notice is given to hotel guests.
• Hotels are generally not required to have lifeguards on duty at hotel swimming pools, except by state statute. However, conspicuous "No Lifeguard" warning signs are minimally required.

Most lawsuits brought against hotels involve some form of premises liability. The hotel has a legal responsibility to keep the property safe from known dangerous conditions. The burden of proof falls on the plaintiff or the injured party to prove that the hotel breached its duty and it is the breach that is the direct cause of the plaintiff’s injuries. You need to get an experienced Florida personal injury lawyer on your side if you think that you have a negligence claim against a hotel. Only an experienced lawyer can say whether or not you have a case.

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Hotel’s Liability for Natural Disasters

In general, hotels are not responsible for natural disasters. However it is foreseeable that there could be a natural disaster such as a hurricane or flood. A hotel cannot be held responsible for the natural disaster, but they can be held responsible for not having proper evacuation and safety plans in place to deal with disasters. Hotels much have plans to evacuate the premises in an orderly and speedy manner in the even to a catastrophe.

If you stayed at a hotel and a natural disaster occurred and you or someone you know was injured, the hotel could be liable for not preparing a safety plan. It depends on the severity of the disaster, the number of claimants and other circumstances, but it is possible to have a case for damages against the hotel if they were negligent in managing their response to the disaster.

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Hotel Responsibility for Personal Belongings

In order to limit liability for the loss of personal property, hotels usually require property worth a significant amount of money to be stored in the hotel safe. Room safes or the hotel safe is usually a good option. Hotels are not liable for the loss of luggage or other personal items left in the guest’s private room, unless the hotel or its employees are at fault.

Generally loss of personal property goes under criminal law because a theft is the most likely thing that occurred. However due to the theft, there could be medical and emotional damages that you are entitled to in civil court. Contact an experienced personal injury attorney to see if you can collect damages for the harm inflicted by the hotel negligently losing your belongings.

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Types of Negligent Security at Hotels

As a general rule, hotels are not responsible for assaults unless fault can be established. All hotels should have a reasonable degree of security measures set in place such as:

• video surveillance cameras,
• security guards,
• locks,
• fences,
• proper lighting,

and other security measures that would deter attacks. Sometimes hotels let their security measures lapse and guests get injured. If you have been injured at a hotel and the following things were present, you might have a claim for negligent security at a hotel:

• the hotel had poor lighting in parking lots and garages
• the hotel failed to monitor security
• the hotel failed to respond to requests for help
• the hotel had either inadequate personnel or improperly trained personnel
• the hotel had improper fencing
• the hotel had lack of warning signs around hazards such as a wet floor
• the hotel negligently hired staff that either assaulted you or stole from you.

It is important to get an experienced lawyer to handle your hotel negligence case. There are many different types of scenarios and you need a lawyer that you can trust to help you present your case to the jury.

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Right to Evict Guests

The default rule is that hotels have a duty to receive guests, but there are some lawful exceptions. Remember that the hotel has a duty to protect its other guests, so if the hotel suspects that a person will pose a threat to the safety and security of the other guests or staff, the hotel has a right to reject the guest or ask them to leave even after they have paid for the accommodations. Some of the reasons to evict hotel guests are:

• disorderly conduct
• non payment for the accommodations
• using the premised for an unlawful purpose or act (ex: prostitution, drug sales)
• failing to register as a guest
• being a minor unaccompanied by an adult registered guest
• violating federal, state or local hotel laws or regulations
• violating a conspicuously posted hotel rule
• failing to leave a room at the required checkout time.

In general, the guest must have refused to pay for the room, the hotel suspected the guest would engage in criminal activity in the hotel, or the guest posed a threat or danger to the other hotel guests or hotel property.

If you think that you were unlawfully evicted from a hotel, you do have options. You need to contact an experienced personal injury lawyer today to make sure that your rights are protected.

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Hotel Duty to Non-guests

A non-guest at a hotel is defined as a person who does not intend to check in to the hotel and become a guest. In general non-guests have no right to enter or remain in the hotel if the management objects to the presence of the non-guest.

If a guest invites a non-guest to the hotel, then the non-guest has a right to enter the hotel for the purpose of visiting a guest. However, if the non-guest engages in prohibited activity then the hotel has the right to evict the non-guest even over the protests of the guest.

Usually there is no duty to allow non-guests into a hotel for solicitation of business from the hotel or its patrons. In fact, it is the hotel’s duty to protect guests from troublesome solicitations from non-guests and usually there are notices posted in hotels that ban solicitation on the premises.

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How we can Help

In most cases, hotels will deny fault when it comes to hotel negligence. The burden is on the plaintiff or the victim to prove in a court of law that the hotel’s negligence is the main cause for the victim’s injuries. You need experienced personal injury lawyers on your side if you want to increase your chances of getting compensation for your injuries.

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Levine & Glassman, P.A. | Hotel Negligence Attorneys

If you or a loved one has experienced an injury due to hotel negligence, you need to make sure you are well represented. The attorneys at Levine & Glassman are experience medical malpractice attorneys and are able to ensure that you receive fair compensation for the damages you or your love one suffered. If you are anywhere in Florida, including: Fort Lauderdale, Miami, West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, or the surrounding areas of Broward, Miami-Dade, or Palm Beach counties, contact Levine & Glassman for an analysis of your hotel negligence case.