On April 3, a Houston man filed a complaint against JIN Hospitality Ltd., which is doing business as Holiday Inn Express Houston. The complaint resulted from an injury the man suffered in October 2016, when the man encountered water in an area where carpet meets tile inside the hotel. The man slipped and fell, sustaining physical injuries.
He is accusing the hotel of negligence. He believes that the hotel’s failure to warn invitees of the dangerous condition as well as their failure to clean up the mess makes them liable for his injuries.
Can Hotels Be Held Liable for Water That Causes a Slip and Fall?
Under the theory of premises liability, property owners are required to keep their property safe for visitors. Property owners have a duty of care to visitors to address dangerous conditions to protect visitors. When a property owner breaches that duty of care and that breach is the cause of an injury, the owner can be held responsible for the injured party’s pain and suffering.
Slip and fall incidents exist under this umbrella. If a dangerous condition, such as water on a tile floor, exists in a hotel and the business does not take steps to warn visitors or to clean up the mess, it is possible to file suit against the company for injuries sustained due to the dangerous conditions. If you suffer injury at a hotel, your best course of action is to seek medical attention and then discuss your case with a personal injury attorney.
