If you are looking for a Fort Lauderdale Hotel and Motel Accident Lawyer, turn to Mr. Quackenbush today. Hotel and motel accidents happen all the time. They can occur in any number of ways. For example, people slip and fall or trip & fall in hotels and motels all of the time. These people may slip & fall on liquid (water, soda, or juice) on the ground/floors of hotels, or they may trip and fall over objects on the ground/floors.
When you fall due to a liquid/object on the ground of a hotel or motel, one of the challenges is to prove that the employees of the hotel or motel knew of the existence of the liquid or object. This is especially true if the accident occurred in the room you rented. After all, hotel employees are typically only in the rooms to clean in between guests. That is, unlike in a store, hotel or motel employees aren’t consistently in all areas of the hotel/motel. Employees of the hotel or motel may only be in the guest rooms once a day.
As such, when you fall on a liquid or object in your room at a hotel or motel, it may be difficult to prove that the hotel or motel should have done something about it. After all, if the employees of the hotel or motel hadn’t been in the room for some time, there would have been no way for them to know of the existence of the liquid/object.
After such a fall, it is said that you will need to prove either “actual” or “constructive notice” on the part of the hotel/motel. Actual notice occurs when the hotel (through its employees) actually knew of the dangerous condition. The hotel or motel will be said to have actual knowledge if one of its employees actually created the dangerous condition (e.g., spilled liquid on the floor in the hotel or motel or left an object on the ground) or saw it and did nothing about it.
On the other hand, you may also be able to prove constructive notice on the part of the hotel or motel. The hotel will be said to have constructive notice if it should have known of the dangerous condition. For example, if you can prove that the liquid or object that caused your fall was on the ground of your room when an employee of the hotel/motel cleaned the room (and the employee did nothing about it), then you will be able to prove constructive notice. You will be able to pursue a case if you are able to prove that the hotel or motel where you fell had either actual or constructive notice of the dangerous condition that caused your fall.
Accidents can occur in various other ways in hotels and motels. For example, hotel employees may accidentally injure you – for example, by accidentally tripping, knocking you over, etc. If this occurs, then the hotel or motel will be responsible for the negligence.
If you have been injured in a hotel or motel in Florida (including Miami, Miami-Dade County, Fort Lauderdale, and Broward County), call Mr. Quackenbush to talk about your case for free today. He can be contacted by calling 954-448-7288.
On the other hand, if an employee of a hotel or motel intentionally injures you, then the hotel or motel may try to argue that it isn’t responsible because the employee acted “outside the scope” of his or her employment (i.e., it wasn’t part of the employee’s work responsibilities to hurt customers). Nevertheless, if you are able to prove that the hotel or motel knew of the employee’s dangerous propensities at the time of hiring him or her, then you may still be able to pursue a case against the hotel/motel for negligent hiring, negligent retention or negligent supervision.
If the intentional act was done by another customer or somebody else other than an employee, then you may be able to pursue a negligent security case against the hotel or motel. You will be able to do this if the hotel didn’t provide proper or adequate security and allowed the crime as a result. It will be easiest to pursue such a case if the crime occurred in a high-crime area because then you can easily argue that the hotel/motel should have known that security was necessary. In order to prove that the incident occurred in a high-crime area, you can obtain the “crime grid” for the area, which shows the numbers of crimes in the area historically.
Sexual assaults also unfortunately happen in hotels and motels. If this occurred to you, then again you may be able to pursue a negligent security case against the hotel/motel where the assault occurred.
If you fell in a hotel or motel and you were injured, one of the things the defense may try to argue is that the dangerous condition was an “open and obvious” condition. For example, if you slipped on water on the ground of the hotel or motel, the defense may try to argue that there was nothing hiding the water and you should have seen it and avoided it. This is a type of “comparative negligence” argument. That is, the defense will argue that you were negligent yourself by not seeing the dangerous condition and avoiding it, and that the amount of compensation you receive should be adjusted accordingly.
In that case, the jury will be asked to divide percentages of fault. That is, if the jury thinks that the hotel or motel was negligent but that you were too, then the jury will be asked to decide what percentage of fault each party is responsible for. For example, the jury could say that both you and the hotel/motel were 50 percent liable. Or the jury could decide that the hotel/motel was 90 percent responsible, and you 10%.
Objects may also fall and hit you in hotels or motels. For example, ceilings/roofs or walls may fall and cause you injuries.
Fixtures (permanent structures) in hotels or motels may also cause you to fall and sustain injuries. For example, steps of improper height may cause your fall and injuries. If a fixture causes your fall, it may be the owner of the building where the hotel/motel exists that is responsible rather than the actual company that runs the hotel/motel. After all, it is probably more likely that the owner of the building itself (rather than the company that runs the hotel/motel) will be responsible for changing fixtures on the property (e.g., steps at the hotel/motel).
In the case that your fall was caused by a transitory object (liquid or an object on the floor/ground), then it is probably more likely that the company that runs the hotel/motel will be responsible. After all, in the case of a transitory object, it is very unlikely that the owner of the building that houses the hotel/motel even knew about the dangerous condition.
If the jury finds that you were somewhat responsible for your own accident and injuries, then the amount of compensation will be reduced by the percentage of fault assigned to you. For instance, if the jury believed your injuries werevalued at $100,000 but that you were 10% responsible for those injuries, then you will only receive $90,000 (instead of $100,000).
Hotels and motels in Florida include Crown Plaza, Fairmont Inn, Hilton, Holiday Inn, InterContinental, Marriot, Radisson, Wyndham, Club Med, La Quinta, Microtel, Sandals, Travelodge, Westin, Best Western, Starwood, Hyatt, Four Seasons, Loews, Omni, Red Roof Inn, Walt Disney Resorts, Econo Lodge, Howard Johnson’s, Motel 6, Red Carpet Inn, and Super 8 Motel.
If you have been injured in a hotel or motel in Florida (including Miami, Miami-Dade County, Fort Lauderdale, and Broward County), call Mr. Quackenbush to talk about your case for free today. He can be contacted by calling 954-448-7288.
If you’ve been hurt in a motel or hotel in Broward County (including Coconut Creek, Cooper City, Coral Springs, Dania Beach, Davie, Deerfield Beach, Hallandale Beach, Hollywood, Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Lauderdale Lakes, Lauderhill, Lighthouse Point, Margate, Miramar, North Lauderdale, Oakland Park, Parkland, Pembroke Pines, Plantation, Pompano Beach, Southwest Ranches, Sunrise, Tamarac, West Park, Weston and Wilton Manors), contact Mr. Quackenbush to discuss your case. This Fort Lauderdale Hotel and Motel Accident Law Firm can assist you to get the compensation that you deserve.