You don’t think of having an accident if you are staying in a hotel, but they do happen. Some hotels are safer than others. If you are injured while staying in a hotel, you may be able to claim compensation if the hotel management is to blame. The compensation payment can help to pay for any medical treatment you need, time you have to spend away from work and a payment for the pain and suffering experienced. As you may be a long way from home when you have the accident, you will have to consider what the rules about personal injury are in the state where the hotel is in and who you might be able to use as a lawyer.
Hotel Injuries That Can Be Avoided by Management
One of the main roles of any hotel management is to ensure a safe and comfortable experience for guests. This means making sure that electrical appliances and sockets are in good order, that doors and windows open and close properly, that staircases, elevators and corridors are safe to use, fire extinguishers and smoke alarms fitted, lighting adequate for use at night and fire escapes are well advertised. There are numerous possible accidents that could happen in a hotel. Slips, trips and falls are probably the most common accidents, but electrical shock from shoddy wiring and appliances are also common hotel injuries.
The Personal Injury Procedure After a Hotel Injury
Hotel operators are aware of the fact that their reputation can suffer very quickly if they do not respond to a complaint about safety, especially in this age of internet reviews and online booking systems. An incident that is not satisfactorily resolved can do more damage than a fast payment of compensation. However, if you are injured while staying at a hotel, you will still have to file a claim with the hotel owner’s insurer. A successful personal injury claim will probably still net you more compensation than using your own travel insurance if you have taken it out. To obtain compensation through a PI claim you will have to have evidence that the hotel management was negligent in some way and that this negligence caused your injury. You will also need to have a report from a doctor giving details about the injury as well as invoices from medical facilities you had to use to treat your injury.
Will a Lawyer Take My Case?
You should contact a personal injury lawyer as soon as you can after the incident. If you use a lawyer once you return home, you will have to make sure that he or she is prepared to take on a case which may be in another state. Most PI lawyers will assess the chances of you successfully obtaining compensation before committing to taking on your case as most rely on a successful payment to obtain their legal fee.
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