What are Slipping in a Hotel on Vacation Claims?
If you were to sustain an injury while staying at a hotel at home or abroad, due to a slipping accident for which you were not to blame, you may be eligible to make slipping in a hotel on vacation claims for compensation. Compensation claims for a slipping in a hotel on vacation are legal civil actions which can be made when the hotel in which you were staying has a responsibility for your health and safety and has failed in its “duty of care” to prevent a slipping accident from occurring which has resulted in you sustaining an injury.
What is meant by a Hotel´s “Duty of Care”?
In order to successfully claim compensation for slipping in a hotel on vacation, it has to be proven that the hotel was negligent by failing to identify a risk of injury and clean, remove or cordon off the hazard to prevent a slipping accident occurring – and that the hotel´s negligence in failing to make your accommodation safe resulted in you sustaining an injury. This breach in their duty of care makes the hotel liable for your injuries and gives you the right to make slipping in a hotel on vacation claims for compensation.
However, a hotel´s duty of care is not always “absolute”. This means that if a slipping hazard in the hotel had only recently materialised – such as if you slipped on water which had just dripped from another guest returning from the pool – and staff at the hotel did not have a reasonable period of time in which to identify the hazard and remove the risk of injury, it may not always be possible to claim compensation for slipping in a hotel on vacation. For this reason, it is always in your best interests to discuss your slipping accident and the injuries you sustained with a lawyer to establish that you are qualified to make slipping in hotel on vacation claims.
Your Health Comes before a Hotel Injury Compensation Claim
When making claims for slipping in a hotel on vacation, in addition to establishing that the hotel was in breach of its duty of care, it is also important to prove that your slipping accident resulted in an injury. Consequently it is vital that, after sustaining an injury due to slipping in a hotel, you receive professional medical attention as soon as possible. By immediately visiting the nearest hospital, the injuries that you sustained due to your slipping accident in the hotel recorded in your medical notes along with any ongoing treatment or long term consequences to your health.
If you waited until you returned home to seek professional medical attention, or relied on first aid administered at the hotel, it could be claimed by the hotel that your injuries due to slipping were not significant enough to warrant hospital attention, or that you contributed to the extent of your slipping injury by delaying a professional examination. You will still be entitled to make slipping in hotel on vacation claims, but how much compensation for slipping in a hotel on vacation you receive may be reduced to reflect your own lack of care.
Making Compensation Claims for Slipping in a Hotel on Vacation
Once it can be determined that you have suffered an injury in a slipping accident due to a hotel´s breach in its duty of care, you can make compensation claims for slipping in a hotel on vacation. The procedure for claiming compensation for a slipping accident in a hotel is going to depend on whether your injury was sustained in a USA hotel or in one overseas. If located in the USA, your lawyer will write to the hotel, advising it that you are making a claim for being injured due to slipping in its premises, and the hotel – or more frequently, their public liability insurers – then has 90 days to conduct its own investigation into your hotel slipping accident and advise your lawyer whether they will accept liability for your injuries.
If your slipping accident happened in an overseas hotel, your lawyer will put you in touch with a public liability lawyer in the country of your accident, who will guide you through the procedures applicable to the country in which you were on vacation. The exception to this is if your accommodation at the overseas hotel was booked as part of a package deal through a USA Tour Operator, in which case your compensation claim for a slipping accident in a hotel can be made against the tour operator, and would follow the same procedures as if your hotel slipping accident had happened in the USA.
If liability for your hotel injury is accepted by the negligent hotel, your lawyer will liaise with the hotel or tour operator´s public liability insurance company to obtain the maximum possible settlement of compensation for a slipping accident in a hotel. Should liability for your injuries be contested, your lawyer will issue court proceedings – an action which often initiates an offer of compensation for slipping in a hotel on vacation from the company´s public liability insurers, who may be reluctant to take a chance on the outcome of your slipping in hotel on vacation claim and keen to save money on potential court costs.
As offers of settlement for slipping in hotel on vacation claims may be made to you directly by the insurance company, it is advisable to be aware of how much compensation for a slipping accident in a hotel you may be entitled to, in order that you do not inadvertently accept an inappropriate offer and are undercompensated. Should you accept an offer of compensation for slipping in a hotel on vacation which is inadequate for your needs, you cannot go back to the insurance company and ask for more!
How Much Can I Claim for a Slipping Accident a Hotel?
How much compensation for slipping in a hotel on vacation you will be entitled to receive will depend on the nature and severity of your slipping injury in relation to your age, sex and general state of health prior to your vacation accident. The way in which the injury from slipping in the hotel affects your quality of life will also be taken into account, and it is advisable that you maintain a diary in order to record the occasions when you are unable to perform day-to-day tasks or participate in leisure and social pursuits as a consequence of your vacation accident.
Any expenses you have incurred for medical treatment can be recovered in a claim for slipping on vacation in a hotel, along with any costs for alternative forms of transport if you are unable to drive and any loss of earnings if the injury you sustained in the slip at the hotel prevents you from working. Consequently, no two slipping in hotel on vacation claims are the same – even when the injuries sustained are identical – and this is a good reason why you should always seek professional legal advice when claiming compensation for slipping on vacation in a hotel.
“Contingency Fee” Slipping in Hotel on Vacation Claims
Most lawyers will offer a free initial assessment of your hotel slip and injury, and advise you whether you have a claim for slipping on vacation in a hotel which is worth your while to pursue. Should you have a slipping in hotel on vacation claim which has a strong probability of success, you will be offered legal representation on a “Contingency Fee” basis.
“Contingency Fee” slipping in hotel on vacation claims enable you to pursue compensation for your injuries without having to worry about lawyer´s fees if your claim for slipping on vacation in a hotel is unsuccessful. However, as you may be liable for the hotel´s or tour operator´s legal fees if your case is lost, lawyers offering “Contingency Fee” slipping in hotel on vacation claims will want to know of any legal fees insurance you may have attached to a household contents or car insurance policy and will recommend that you to take out additional protection if necessary.
Free Legal Advice about Slipping in Hotel on Vacation Claims
If you, or somebody close to you, have been injured due to slipping in a hotel in an accident for which you were not to blame, you are invited to call our freephone service and discuss the circumstances of your hotel slip directly with an experienced public liability lawyer. Our lawyer will provide you with practical and helpful advice which is relative to your personal circumstances and answer any questions you may have about claiming compensation for slipping on vacation in a hotel.
There is no obligation on you to proceed with a claim for slipping on vacation in a hotel once you have spoken with us and all conversations between yourself and our lawyers are completely confidential. We would advise that you speak with us as soon as practical after you have received professional medical attention following your hotel slip to maximise the likelihood of a successful claim for slipping in a hotel on your vacation.
Related types of accidents: hotel injury claims, hotel bed bug claims, hotel food poisoning claims.