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According to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, the city of Las Vegas hosts over 42 million visitors and 21,000 conventions each year. To accommodate this massive quantity of people moving in and out of the city, Las Vegas also has approximately 146,993 hotel rooms. Las Vegas also has an impressive number of accidents that take place inside its many hotels. Though an oasis for many, these hotels and resorts can cause severe injuries and, under Nevada’s premises liability laws, be held liable for personal injuries in cases where negligence is found.
A wide variety of accidents take place inside hotels and casinos. In-room injuries are also a reasonably common calamity and can stem from things such as broken furniture, bed bugs, or scalding water temperatures. Slip and fall, or trip and fall accidents involving wet floors, slick surfaces, or uneven flooring or carpeting are among the most common hotel accidents. Even though they are the most common, slip and fall or trip and fall cases can be some of the hardest cases to win. To successfully win a claim for your damages, you will need a highly trained hotel accident attorney from the Law Office of Kevin R. Hansen working on your case.
The second most common form of injury that occurs in hotels and casinos in the Las Vegas area is food poisoning. Las Vegas has roughly 22,000 dining establishments within its city limits and only 85 qualified health inspectors on its payroll. This means that each inspector needs to average 259 establishments a piece, no less than once per year. With these numbers, it is little surprise that food poisoning is the second most common cause of injury. The most common violations found by the Southern Nevada Health District were unclean food surfaces, improper hand washing, improper use of wiping cloths, and foods kept at improper holding temperatures.
Many other types of hotel accidents and casino injuries can take place on hotel property. Some might result from neglect or improper maintenance, and others might be a direct result of the action or inaction of a hotel employee. Swimming pool accidents, shuttle bus and parking lot accidents, and elevator and escalator accidents are other common injuries that can occur in Las Vegas hotels and require the expertise of a hotel accident attorney to see that you are adequately compensated.
Proving Hotel Negligence
Nevada law requires that the person filing the personal injury claim provide four elements of a case before being able to move forward with a hotel accident lawsuit. The injured party must prove that:
The hotel had a legal duty of care to the injured party. Under this rule, the hotel was expected to have taken reasonable measures to prevent threats that may cause injury to its patrons.
The hotel breached that duty through some sort of danger such as unmarked wet surfaces, broken handrails, torn carpeting, etc
The hotel’s breach of duty caused the injuries sustained by the claimant
The injury resulted in verifiable damages to the claimant
What to Do After an Accident in A Las Vegas Hotel
If you are the victim of an injury caused by a hotel’s negligence, it is essential that you contact the hotel manager and explain the situation. You should also ask for a signed, written report from the manager. If you can talk to anyone who witnessed the incident or accident, do so. Encourage them to write and date a brief statement regarding what they saw or heard. Be sure to get their names and addresses if possible. Take any pictures and videos that are appropriate to your situation. Lastly, you need to keep track of your damages. This means getting everything in writing from your doctor or pharmacist and making copies. You should be photocopying or photographing any receipts, paperwork, or documentation of any kind that has to do with the incident no matter how small it may seem. Having this kind of information ready will give your Law Office of Kevin R. Hansen hotel accident attorney a huge head start when it comes to building the strongest case possible for you.
What Types of Damages Are Usually Compensated?
Guests of a hotel or casino who can meet the requirements of proof for their case may be entitled to collect on damages such as payment of medical bills including follow-up care, lost wages due to missing work, decreased earning capacity, pain and suffering, or wrongful death. Each case is unique and making sure that you have the right paperwork and the correct documentation for everything can be an overwhelming and frustrating experience. It will significantly improve the odds of your claim if you have a knowledgeable, determined hotel accident attorney in your corner fighting for you. We here at the Law Office of Kevin R. Hansen can ease the legal burden for you by handling all of the legwork involved.
Overview of Hotel Liability
Hotels and casinos are huge moneymakers in Las Vegas, and they have the influence that comes with a lot of revenue. Around one-third of all residents of Nevada work in a hotel or a casino. It is because of this that Nevada limits the liability of hotels and casinos for personal injury and damage to guest property. For example, if you left an expensive necklace in your room while you went out to dinner and returned to find the necklace stolen, the hotel is not responsible. A hotel is not liable for any theft, damage, loss, or destruction to any guest’s property that was unattended in a room if the hotel provided the option of a safe for the guest to use. The hotel is only responsible for providing a safe environment. They are not responsible for seeing that you use it correctly.
Assault is another complex area. Hotel owners are generally not considered to be at fault for injuries that their guests may have sustained at the hands of someone who was not an employee of that establishment. The due care law in Nevada holds the hotel owner liable, however, if they did not provide any lighting in their parking lots or any security at their doors. The potential for the incident needs to be something a reasonable, responsible owner should have foreseen.
A hotel’s premises extends beyond the front lobby and the rooms for rent. It also includes airport shuttle buses, parking lots, swimming pools, hot tubs, meeting and banquet halls, and any other areas where guests are generally allowed to be.
If you or someone you love has been injured due to the carelessness or negligence of a Las Vegas area hotel or casino, contact a personal injury attorney at the Law Office of Kevin R. Hansen. Hotel injury cases are very intricate, and the stakes are often way too high for you to risk handling the case on your own. Call us to speak with a trained, compassionate member of our team to find out how we can help you recover. It won’t cost you a thing to talk to our attorneys about your case.
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