AboutDoctor Settlement Expertise 27 years of front line plaintiff`s trial lawyer experience in PERSONAL INJURY INSURANCE CLAIMS. Along with other attorneys and insurance adjusters, we have created a website to help injured people settle their own personal injury claims. With the help from feedback from hundreds of satisfied members, www.settlementcentral.com has become THE AUTHORITY for Internet personal injury insurance claim settlements. I am humbled and honored if people can benefit from my experience and current volunteer work in helping injured people. I hope I can explain things in a manner that is useful for the questioner. If not, do not hesitate to e-mail me and I will take a second shot at it! Best Wishes for your physical and financial recovery.
Experience
Life Experience: 27 years of front line plaintiff's trial lawyer experience
Organizations: American Trial Lawyers Association (AAJ)
Washington State Trial Lawyers Association
Awards and Honors:
I am humbled and honored everytime I am selected to help injured people. And when people give feedback that they have benefited from my experience and current volunteer efforts, then that is a double honor and award for me.
Question If an association contracts with a hotel for use of the facility for meetings, who is liable for slip and fall claims if a meeting attendee has a slip and fall injury? Does the hotel's Commercial General Liability policy cover the injury? or does it fall on the association leasing the meeting facility? Thanks.
Answer Hi Dorothy,
It is difficult to figure out an answer without any facts regarding the incident. For example, if the organization did something negligent within their meeting room, such as leave a projector or power cord or other obstruction where people could trip on it, then they are liable and not the hotel.
But for all other types of injuries, it COULD BE the hotel. But note that it COULD BE there is no liability whatsoever. Nobody guarantees your safety on their premises. One must prove negligence on the part of the hotel before they will be forced to pay one dime to an injured person.
Note, however, that all hotels do have a policy that will cover limited medical expenses for injuries sustained on their property, irrespective of whether or not they were negligent. So one should be able to have them cover medical expenses.
But there is no automatic liability against a business; one has to show negligence on their part. Premises Liability Slip Or Trip And Fall Accidents http://www.settlementcentral.com/page3006.htm is an excellent review of premises liability or slip and fall accident confusion as to liability. There are three good examples on that page to show you the difference between liable property owners and those whom one cannot sue.
The hotel IS NOT AN INSURER OF YOUR SAFETY. You can recover ONLY if you can show that the hotel was negligent, and even then, your award will be reduced TO THE EXTENT OF YOUR OWN NEGLIGENCE IN FAILING TO WATCH WHERE YOU WERE WALKING. The hotel will raise this defense in an effort to reduce your award.
The duty of the hotel toward its patrons is one of affirmative obligation to inspect and to remove any dangers, such as a loose or bunched up carpet or a spilled meal on a hard surface floor or a ridge between sections of the cement walkway entrance. There is also an affirmative duty to protect the patrons from a foreseeable risk if the cost of that protection is reasonable.
For example, perhaps they lacked lighting or a handrail that might have prevented your fall. In this case, the cost of lighting the stairs or providing a handrail is minimal when compared to the risks to the patrons. Hence, we would think the hotel to have been negligent for not making that kind of investment.
Now, once again let’s look at your own liability. It will not defeat your claim, but your negligence can be used to reduce the amount of your award. So here is your lesson: assume that they will claim that you are at least one-third at fault, and be prepared to defend on the basis set forth above.
DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED about that defense, but just be aware that it will be raised if your claim has any value. Without telling anyone about your visit, you should go into the hotel and spot the defect that caused your fall and take some photos. Show the eyelevel distractions of what would have caught your eye as you walked.
Gather Evidence: photos and witness statements
GET PHOTOS
Take your cell phone or small camera and take some photos of the area. GATHER ALL EVIDENCE NOW: DO IT QUICKLY AND QUIETLY, without notifying the hotel just yet. Leave that for later. http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0216.htm Evidence to Support Your Personal Injury Insurance Claim of Premises Liability, Slip and Fall.
GET WITNESS STATEMENTS: if you know of anyone who has experienced a slip and fall or even a near-accident on any similar conditions, then you can use their statement. Also, take a moment to get the statements of any witnesses down in writing. This will also prepare them for what they will be asked later on. Witness Statements Settle Personal Injury Insurance Claims http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0196.htm
Be Prepared for the Kinds of Questions they Might Ask of you.
Of course we would like to avoid giving any recorded statement, so ask the questioner to send a list of questions since you do not think well in quick pressure situations. Fat chance she will do that, but you could try. At a minimum, you need to be prepared for an interview.
We have not made up a list of questions to expect for the premises liability part of the free side of my website, so you will just have to use the following as a guide to the range of questions to expect. This is a list of questions insurance adjusters ask http://www.settlementcentral.com/page0207.htm injured claimants.
Here are two pages that tell what to do now if you have already given a recorded statement to the adjuster.
I trust that my efforts have been of value to you. And thus I would respectfully request that you find the feedback form on this website and leave me some feedback.
