No one wants to have their vacation interrupted with a trip to the emergency room. Yet, when accidents happen to vacationers, the fallout can impact more than just a ruined trip. When a guest at a hotel or vacation resort becomes injured after a slip and fall accident on the property, the consequences can be devastating, debilitating, and potentially lifelong or life threatening.
Do I Have to Seek Medical Attention?
When a person becomes injured in a slip and fall accident, the damage and pain should be immediately addressed. Medical attention is often required; however, after the initial physical concerns are dealt with, one may wonder what to expect next.
Besides the physical healing, the consequences of an accident include the costs of paying for the necessary medical care and follow-up treatments, as well as the concerns related to loss of income. Often, pain and suffering are part of the equation as well.
These impacts and costs incurred after an accident are addressed under liability law, which may indicate that the property owner may bear responsibility for the accident. If a property owner is liable, they would be required to pay restitution to the guest who suffered an injury as a result of their negligence.
What is Negligence?
Negligence is when someone breaches a duty of reasonable care. When a person or business neglects to exercise sufficient attention to fulfill their duty to care for their patrons, they are breaching their legal obligation to provide protection to their guests.
When a hotel is negligent and an accident occurs as a result, they are legally liable for that accident.
How is Negligence Proven?
To establish that negligence caused a slip and fall accident, it must first be proven that the hotel had a duty of care, that they breached that duty, and that the accident resulted from that breach of duty.
If the burden of proof is met, the hotel should be held legally liable for the accident. This means that the hotel will be required to pay damages to the individual injured in the accident.
What is the Responsibility of a Hotel or Resort?
The hotel owes a duty of care to its guests to provide a safe environment that is free of foreseeable threats. When it comes to slip and falls, the duty pertains to keeping walkways, stairways, and flooring free of wet or slippery surfaces, uneven or broken ground or stairs, and tripping hazards, like random objects and clutter. Other issues, like proper lighting, that affect visibility may also fall under this duty of care to protect guests from slip and fall accidents.
Determining liability may be difficult after a slip and fall accident, so it is important to contact a lawyer right away. A lawyer will help one pursue compensation for their injuries.
Delco Personal Injury Lawyers at Eckell Sparks Represent Guests Injured on Hotel Properties
If you are hurt in a slip and fall accident at a hotel property, you may be eligible for compensation. Our Delco personal injury lawyers at Eckell, Sparks, Levy, Auerbach, Monte, Sloane, Matthews & Auslander, P.C. protect clients against negligent property owners. For a free consultation, complete our online form or call us at 610-565-3701. Located in Media and West Chester, Pennsylvania, we serve clients throughout Delaware County, Chester County, and Montgomery County.