It may be hard to imagine how you could end up in hospital or back at home recovering after a stay in a hotel, but it is entirely feasible. Some types of accidents can happen anywhere and the chance of being injured increases if safety at the hotel is neglected.
Injuries can become an expensive liability when you consider the potential scale of hospital treatment as well as lost earnings due to the need for time away from work. These costs may be recovered if a claim for fair compensation is successful. This is more likely if you get legal help from an experienced personal injury lawyer.
How a Stay in a Hotel Could Result in a Serious Injury
Accidents in hotels are not frequent occurrences, but a slip and fall or trip and fall accident is a possibility anywhere where safety concerns are not properly addressed. Accidents of the slip, trip and fall type occur most frequently when facilities are not maintained on time and allowed to deteriorate.
Typical hazards are torn or worn floor covering, uneven surfaces, especially staircases, elevator entrances and entrance ways to the hotel itself. Poor weather conditions play a part but no one can blame a hotel owner or manager who attempts to deal with a potential hazard.
It is only when a hazard has been noticed yet not addressed that a personal injury claim is going to have a chance of success following an accident.There are a number of situations where potential hazardous conditions are unavoidable, such as wet floors after routine cleaning.
Sensible hotel management practices would include ensuring hotel customers are warned of any increased slipperiness or they are prevented from using the area until the hazard disappears. It is only when sensible management is lacking that avoidable accidents are likely to happen, leading to claims for fair compensation.
The Evidence Needed To Prove Negligence
Proving that Best Western was negligent requires a certain amount of evidence. The best time to gather evidence is immediately after you are injured if you can. Obviously, getting medical help is the first priority.
But if you don’t require emergency medical care or while you are waiting for an ambulance you should start to gather evidence if you can. The most effective types of evidence to prove your claim are:
Photos
Take photos of the area and of the hazard that caused your accident. It’s very important to take photos of the accident site before it’s cleaned up. You can also take videos of the area with your phone but you should always get photos in addition to whatever videos you take.
Take photos from several different angles so that you can give a good representation of what the area looked like when you’re in court.
Security Tapes
If the accident occurred in a public part of the hotel like the lobby, the parking lot, or the hallways there should be security footage that shows the accident. Ask the manager for a copy of any security footage that was taken in that area.
Medical Documentation
Medical documentation of your injuries is critically important. Always go to a doctor right away and get documentation of your injury as well as a prognosis, treatment plans, and other medical documentation that could help your claim.
Witness Statements
Witnesses to the accident should give their statements as son as possible while the accident is still fresh in their minds. Get contact information for each witness and write down a statement from them if you can.
If you can’t write their statement use your phone to video their statement just make sure that they give they give their names and phones numbers too so you can contact them later if you need them.
A Personal Injury Lawyer Can Help With Your Hotel Injury Claim
Even if you think that your accident was due to negligence on the part of someone at the hotel you were staying at, you would have to prove it to succeed in getting the hotel’s insurer to pay compensation. The whole personal injury process is not straightforward and it may help to speak with a lawyer.
Talk to a personal injury lawyer with experience in hotel injury claims as soon as you have recovered enough from your injuries.
*Disclaimer: The content of this article serves only to provide information and should not be construed as legal advice. If you file a claim against the Quality Inn, or any other party, you may not be entitled to any compensation.
