Las Vegas Hotel Injury Lawyer

Are hotel owners liable for all accidents and injuries that occur on their property?

Nevada premises liability laws are based on case law and Nevada statute 41.141. It is essential to note that hotel owners are not always liable for every accident or injury that occurs on their properties.

In hotel injury claims, comparative negligence is often applied to determine the percentage of negligence the hotel owner contributed to the plaintiff’s injuries. For example, if someone deliberately injures themself knowing full well their actions will result in injuries, then the hotel owner would not be held accountable.

On the other hand, suppose the hotel knowingly has ripped carpeting, which is a hazard, but fails to warn or take action to fix the carpeting. You notice the carpeting but still trip and fall and are injured. In this case, the hotel’s property owner would either be mostly or entirely responsible for your injuries.

What type of hazards at a hotel could result in accidents and injuries?

Some common examples of potential hotel hazards that could result in a hotel injury claim include the following:

• Damaged flooring – The carpet is frayed or ripped, or there are cracks or missing sections of flooring that increase the risk of slips, trips, and falls.
• Improper installation of casino gambling equipment – If casino gambling equipment (like slot machines) is not secured, it could fall on a person and cause injuries.
• Swimming pool hazards – The pool or pool area is not well maintained, there is no signage warning of hazards or dangers, the deck is extremely slippery, there are no life preservers, etc.
• Parking lot hazards – The parking lot lacks sufficient lighting, repairs, and maintenance.
• Bathtubs and shower hazards – There are no grab rails, or they lack anti-slip flooring.
• Lack of hotel maintenance – The hotel is in a state of disrepair, which increases the risks of accidents and injuries.
• Improper food handling practices – Food obtained from hotel restaurants causes food poisoning because it is not being handled or stored correctly.
• Elevator and escalator hazards – The elevators and escalators are not adequately maintained, lack proper certification, etc.
• Exposure to toxic substances – This includes hazardous chemicals, mold, mildew, etc.

In addition, there are also cases where guests have been assaulted by hotel and resort staff or by other guests. In these situations, you could either have a premises liability claim or a personal injury claim.

For example, the hotel bar staff overserve a guest when they are obviously drunk. The drunk guest assaults you and causes you injuries. Since the hotel bar staff’s actions contributed to the assault, you could have a premises liability claim against the hotel and a personal injury claim against the drunk guest.

Does Nevada have an open and obvious defense in hotel injury claims?

In 2012, the case of Foster v. Costco went to the Nevada Supreme Court. In this case, Costco claimed that the victim (Foster) should not have tripped on a wooden pallet that was left out in the open because it was an open and obvious hazard.

However, the Nevada Supreme Court determined that property owners had a duty to warn invitees and licensees even when the hazard was open and obvious. This significantly changed Nevada’s premises liability laws to make it easier for people injured to seek damages when they are injured.

This change now requires reviewing everyone’s actions and determining how much their actions contributed towards the accident and injuries.