Boca Raton has one of the most thriving hospitality industries in Florida. Notable hotels in the City of All Seasons include The Boca Raton (formerly the Boca Hotel & Resort) Boca Raton Marriott, and Hilton Boca Raton Suites just to name a few. Throughout the year, thousands of people visit the city’s hotels and expect they’ll be safe when visiting these establishments.
Nonetheless, that’s no longer the case because some properties are managed by negligent owners. When this happens, guests are likely to fall victim to hotel accidents.
An
injury lawyer in Boca Raton at Eltringham Law Group can help you pursue compensation for your lost wages, medical bills, and other damages if you or a loved one gets injured in a hotel accident.
Causes of Hotel Accidents
The leading causes of hotel accidents in Boca Raton include:
- Garage and parking lot accidents
- Slippery floors.
- Broken steps/railings
- Bathtub accidents
- Improper lighting in rooms, resulting in falls and injuries
- Accidents involving valet drivers
- Broken furniture
Most hotel accidents are preventable, and you deserve compensation for any injuries or losses you suffer.
Examples of Hotel Injuries
Here are examples of injuries that can occur in a hotel:
- Slip and fall accidents
- Elevator and escalator accidents
- Drownings
- Burn injuries caused by faulty equipment
What to Do After an Accident at a Hotel in Boca Raton
Hotel operators in Boca Raton owe guests the duty of care. In this regard, they should ensure their premises are safe. If that doesn’t happen and an accident occurs, you should take the following steps to secure your right to compensation:
Document the accident scene
If an unsafe condition contributed to the accident, document it immediately. After learning about the accident, the hotel may rectify the condition, so taking photographs/videos of the scene can provide valuable evidence when you file a lawsuit.
Notify the management
Insurance companies typically require hotels to file an accident report when they learn about it. For this reason, you should notify the management about your injuries and the circumstances that contributed to them. It’s equally important to avoid making accusations/admissions. You should always ask for a copy of any incident report although many hotels will refuse to give it to you.
Seek medical attention
It’s best to see a doctor promptly so that your injuries get documented. The hotel may argue that your injuries occurred elsewhere, but the medical report on the day or day after such an incident can help disprove such claims.
Contact a hotel injury lawyer
At Eltringham Law Group, we have experience advocating personal injury cases arising from hotel accidents. We can assess your situation, advise you on the appropriate steps, and represent you if you decide to pursue legal action.
How Do You Prove a Hotel’s Negligence?
A hotel guest who gets injured and intends to pursue compensation must prove that the establishment breached the duty of care owed to them. In addition, hotels must inspect the premises regularly, keep them safe, and implement reasonable measures to warn guests of potentially dangerous situations.
Anyone who is a customer at any lodging establishment is an “invitee” under Florida premises liability law. For this reason, once you check into a hotel room, you’re entitled to a high standard of care. You can file a personal injury lawsuit if you get injured due to negligence by a hotel. When filing a case, you must prove that the operator breach its duty to keep you safe from harm, that you sustained injuries and those injuries are related to the accident that occurred on the hotel’s property.
For instance, if a hotel fails to light its parking lot sufficiently and a guest gets assaulted, it can be liable for any injuries suffered. Similarly, a hotel can be responsible if it fails to clear ice from the driveway or other pedestrian walk way and a guest slips and gets injured.
Potential Damages in Hotel Injury Cases
Guests who suffer injuries in a hotel accident can recover both economic and non-economic damages. The monetary damages can be in the form of lost wages and medical expenses. On the other hand, the non-economic damages can include loss of enjoyment of life, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of consortium.
How We Can Help
Hotel accident claims are complex and challenging to pursue, but here’s how an attorney from Eltringham Law Group can help:
Gathering evidence
Personal injury lawsuits typically rely on accident and medical reports and similar evidence to prove fault, negligence, and liability. In addition, an attorney can gather evidence, such as witness statements and surveillance footage, to support your claim.
Finding expert witnesses
An attorney with years of experience handling personal injury claims knows the experts they can ask for answers relating to various injuries. These experts can testify about the cause and nature of your injuries, provide a prognosis for a medical condition, offer their opinion about engineering faults, or reconstruct the accident.
Valuing your injury claim
When you decide to pursue compensation, you may not know the value of your claim since you’re not familiar with Florida’s personal injury laws. Insurance adjusters will try as much as possible to devalue your claim and make low ball settlement offers. But that’s where the hotel injury attorneys from Eltringham Law Group come in.
We will calculate the value of your claim based on the severity of your injuries and your economic and non-economic damages. Our attorneys know how to maximize the value of your claim and ensure you get fully compensated for your losses and injuries.
Communicate with the insurance company
Insurance companies are known to pay accident victims as little money as possible. They may deny liability or claim that the injuries resulted from something else.
Your lawyer has your best interests at heart and can save you from the stress of dealing with insurers. This way, you can focus on recovering while they work to secure compensation for you.
Contact a Hotel Injury Lawyer in Boca Raton
As a hotel accident victim, having a personal injury lawyer is advisable. The attorneys at
Eltringham Law Group have years of experience advocating these cases and will leave no stone unturned when representing you.
Contact us today to schedule a free case consultation.