Slip and Fall in Hotel Bathroom

Case Overview

This case takes place in Georgia and involves a woman who suffered severe injuries from a fall in a hotel bathtub. In this particular room, the bathtub had a hole that continued to grow as it corroded over time. The hotel manager, instead of replacing the tub, attempted to repair the hole with a combination of fiberglass and epoxy. The plaintiff was staying at the hotel and was using the tub when the material used to cover the hole came loose, and the woman’s foot got stuck in the hole. The woman’s job required her to spend a great deal of time on her feet, and the injuries she received from the hole prevented her from working for an extended period of time. It is alleged that the defendant should have replaced the tub entirely, and that the guests using the bathtub were placed in great danger by his failure to do so

Questions to the Premises Liability expert and their responses

What is your experience in hotel safety and protocols to ensure customer safety? Please explain.

As a safety consultant, I conduct approximately 60 facility reviews annually. I am highly qualified to review this case. I have inspected a number of hotels and can speak to the industry standard of preventative maintenance.

What industry standards are in place that require any faulty hotel room appliances/equipment to be replaced? Please explain.

Hotel rooms should be inspected on a monthly basis to make all necessary repairs, meet regulatory standards, and to ensure that any defect does not cause any injury to a guest. I would like to know the construction of the tub and how long the hotel manager knew about the defect.

About the expert

This hotel safety expert has more than thirty years of multi-disciplinary safety experience, education and training in occupational safety and health management, premises safety, and forensic safety. He currently serves as a safety consultant and Area Director for an independent hospitality safety and security consulting practice where he conducts periodic safety program audits and review services including facility inspections. On average he conducts approximately 60 facility reviews annually. This expert's hospitality industry career includes positions as Regional Director of Loss Prevention for Marriott Hotels and Resorts; Distributor for Vingcard and Schlage Intellis electronic guestroom lock systems; and Independent Consultant / Regional Director for Hospitality Risk Controls, Inc. He is active in the American Society of Safety Engineers, Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (Safety Technical Group and Forensics Professional Group), and National Floor Safety Institute (Certified Walkway Safety Auditor). This expert has extensive expert witness experience and earned his BS at Georgia State University.

E-010421

Specialties:

Premises Liability