Whether you are a guest at a hotel or a visitor, it is the hotel's responsibility to ensure that you are safe while on their premises. This means that the hotel must do its part to prevent injuries to its patrons. If you had a slip and fall during your visit to a hotel, here are some things you should know.
Determining if a Hotel Is Liable
Just because you have an accident or sustain an injury while you are on a business’ premises doesn't necessarily mean that the business can be held responsible. When it comes to slip and fall injuries, you must prove that their negligence caused you to be injured for the hotel to be liable. Some instances where a hotel might be negligent would be:
- Spills left unattended
- Failure to place wet floor signs
- Inadequate lighting.
While many more situations could result in a hotel guest being injured, the above mentioned could lead to a slip-and-fall accident.
Proving the Hotel Was Negligent
Because a hotel has a duty to ensure that guests are in a safe environment, they must ensure that repairs are done in a timely fashion, spills are cleaned up, et cetera. If a quick fix is not possible, the hotel must place signs in a conspicuous area so that guests are aware of any dangers.
When a hotel or even their workers fail to take all reasonable measures to ensure guests’ safety, this is where they could be liable if someone were to be harmed on the hotel premises. 
Their Negligence Caused the Injury
Although there might be some obvious negligence on the hotel's part, such as a light being out, a crack in the ground, or a spill on the floor, it must have been the direct cause of your injury.
For example, if you fell because your shoe was untied while there was also a spill on the floor, your fall was not directly caused by the spill. However, if you were walking and slipped on a wet floor with no wet floor sign in sight, this could fall on the hotel's shoulders.
There Must Be an Actual Injury
To have grounds for a personal injury case, you would need to have sustained some substantial injury that required medical treatment, hospitalization, time off work, etc. In other words, the fall must have caused you some kind of loss, such as lost wages, impaired mobility, or disability to receive compensation.
Find an Experienced Attorney
The hotel industry is big business, which also means they typically have a lot of money to spend on top-notch legal representation. After sustaining an injury at a hotel, one of the first things you should do after getting medical treatment is to contact an attorney.
It would help if you chose an experienced attorney dealing with claims against hotels, especially regarding slip and fall injuries. This is because no matter how clear cut you think your case is, you must be able to prove it.
Final Thoughts
While it is vital to seek legal representation for slip and fall injuries, the first thing you should do is go see a doctor. Not only is this important so you can make sure you are okay, but you will need this documentation later on if you plan to file a lawsuit against the hotel.
Remember, there is no real "injury" unless the loss was substantial, and only a certified medical professional can truly assess the extent of your injuries.
