Category Archives: Injuries

by | November 4, 2011 · 2:04 am

Hospitality Industry Guest Security: Pennsylvania Hotel Sued By Woman Attacked In Elevator For "Negligence In Failing To Provide Adequate Security"

“…The woman and her husband, of East Pittsburgh, filed the 17-page lawsuit in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court against Hyatt Hotels Corp., alleging the Findlay hotel was negligent for failing to provide adequate security that led to the Jan. 31 attack…”

A newlywed who was stabbed inside a Hyatt Regency Pittsburgh International Airport hotel elevator during what police said was an attempted sexual assault sued the hotel’s parent company on Tuesday.

Michael Furman, 28, of Weirton, W.Va., is awaiting trial. The lawsuit states that Furman rode in the elevator with her, then put his hand over her mouth and pushed her against a wall. The woman fought back, freed herself and ran to her room when the elevator doors opened, the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit states that hotel employees took five to 10 minutes to get to her room after she hit the emergency button on the phone.

Read more: Victim of attack takes Findlay hotel to court – Pittsburgh Tribune-Review http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/pittsburgh/s_765081.html#ixzz1chKZ4nod

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by | October 29, 2011 · 9:26 am

Hospitality Industry Property Risks: New York Hotel Elevator Malfunctions And "Plummets" 8 Floors

 “There was an elevator malfunction… Our security team responded to the incident immediately… All guests were safely evacuated… We are ensuring the elevator car in question undergoes a thorough inspection…”

 They got into an elevator and headed down from the rooftop terrace, but when another couple got in on the 16th floor, the compartment dropped and plummeted eight floors before stopping.

The group, which also included British actor Guy Burnet, actress Rosie Fellner and comedian Seth Herzog, was leaving the afterparty for new movie Janie Jones at the Gramercy Park Hotel in Manhattan on Thursday night (27Oct11).

Janie Jones director Rosenthal tells Nymag.com, “We’ve all had a couple of drinks… and we’re just piling into the elevator… Everyone is yelling and hooting… (The couple) decide to jump in, and as soon as they jump in, the thing starts plummeting down. His girlfriend is lucky she didn’t get killed because her foot was barely inside the door when the elevator dropped. I think we fell eight stories before the emergency brake went off. We initially thought we’d gone all the way to the basement and bounced on the springs.”

Emergency services were called to the scene, but the frustrated group decided not to wait, and took action themselves, climbing out of a gap in the doors onto a floor.

For more:  http://www.hollywood.com/news/Actors_trapped_in_elevator_fall/8028652

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by | October 24, 2011 · 5:31 am

Hospitality Industry Safety Risks: OSHA Renews "Local Emphasis Enforcement Program" Targeting Hotel Operators; Electrical Safety Standards Are Cited Most Often

OSHA recently renewed a Local Emphasis Enforcement Program (“LEP”) that targets hotel operators in OSHA’s Region 2, which includes New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. The directive outlining OSHA’s Hotel LEP is available on OSHA’s website. 

The Hotel LEP was launched in October 2010, and during the first year of the initiative, OSHA limited enforcement inspections to hotels in the Virgin Islands. According to an OSHA Region 2 official, the agency started in the Virgin Islands because of a high number of reports of workplace injuries at hotels in that area. Since the start of the LEP, OSHA has essentially inspected a different hotel property each month to month and a half. The hotel properties subject to LEP inspections have ranged from locally-owned motels to multinational hotel chains.

Most Frequently Cited Standards in the Hotel Industry in 2010

 

CITED STANDARDS

# OF CITATIONS

Electrical Safety

67

Hazard Communication

37

Personal Protective Equipment

30

Bloodborne Pathogens

25

Respiratory Protection

21

Asbestos

18

Lockout/Tagout

14

Recordkeeping – Annual Summary

13

For more:  http://www.hospitalitylaboremploymentlawblog.com/2011/10/articles/osha-renews-enforcement-program-targeting-hotels/

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by | October 22, 2011 · 5:20 am

Hospitality Industry Insurance Risks: California Hotel Owner Charged With Workers' Compensation Violations And Fraud

“…accused of dissuading an employee from seeking workers’ compensation after a work injury, fraud and making false claims. He is charged with two counts of insurance fraud, failure to maintain workers’ compensation insurance …”

The owner of a long-troubled Santa Cruz area inn is headed to trial on charges that he mishandled workers’ compensation and committed insurance fraud.

Sanjiv Kakkar, owner of Brookdale Inn and Spa, is accused of dissuading an employee from seeking workers’ compensation after a work injury, fraud and making false claims. He is charged with two counts of insurance fraud, failure to maintain workers’ compensation insurance and passing off bad checks, according to Kelly Walker, a prosecutor with the Santa Cruz District Attorney’s Office.

Kakkar appeared in court Friday with his attorney, Peter Leeming, to set a date of March 12 for a jury trial. A court date was also scheduled for December for a motion to consolidate the case with a second criminal case involving Kakkar. The latter case involves misdemeanor violations of health and safety codes.

Leeming said he is looking forward to finally taking the case to trial after multiple delays.

For more:  http://www.mercurynews.com/central-coast/ci_19167190

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by | October 16, 2011 · 7:06 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: "Enabling Independence: Service For Guest With Disabilities" Outlines "Americans With Disabilities Act" (ADA) Compliance (Video)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIGw7QKOJnY&feature=player_embedded]

This video “Enabling Independence: Service for Guests with Disabilities” outlines how the American Disabilities Act (ADA)affects the hospitality industry. It highlights the unique needs of guests with various disabilities and identifies how lodging employees can accommodate their desire for independence. It also covers expanded ADA requirements regarding power-driven mobility devices, service animals, and practical steps you can take to ensure the safety and satisfaction of guests with disabilities.

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by | October 15, 2011 · 5:22 am

Hospitality Industry Liability Risks: Arizona Hotel Found Guilty Of "Negiligence" On Appeal In Death Of Guest As Judges Find "Intended Use Of Stairway Required Center Handrail"; Carpet "Camouflaged" Dangerous Condition

“…An expert for the family testified that construction plans for the hotel, as well as its floor plan, depicted a center handrail where Volner fell… The expert also said that based on the intended use and width of the stairway, as well as applicable city building codes, a center handrail was required…”

“…the pattern on the carpet “camouflaged’’ the stairs, exacerbating the dangerous condition created by the lack of a handrail…”

The state Court of Appeals has upheld a $2.4 million verdict against a Tucson hotel where a woman tripped, fell down the stairs and died.

In a unanimous ruling, the judges rejected arguments by the owners of the Viscount Hotel that evidence of subsequent injuries is irrelevant to whether the business was negligent in this specific incident. They also brushed aside claims by the attorneys for the hotel that such evidence was prejudicial and would unfairly sway jurors against the business.

 Court records show that 78-year-old Harriet Volner was at the hotel in 2007 to have breakfast with friends when she fell at the stairs leading into the hotel’s atrium. She hit her head, went into a coma and died five days later after being taken off life support.

Her four children sued. A jury issued a $3 million judgment. But jurors concluded that Volner was 20 percent liable for her own injuries, reducing the verdict to $2.4 million.

A former hotel employee said there had been a center handrail but it had been removed and the carpeting changed. And an expert witness hired by the hotel agreed that the building code required a center handrail and it was a violation to have removed it.

For more:  http://www.ahwatukee.com/news/valley_and_state/article_a9ac7f01-7345-5d2f-8ebd-89ae0aa1271e.html

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by | October 12, 2011 · 6:54 am

Hospitality Industry Insurance Solutions: "Hotel Reputation" Insurance Policies Can Now Provide Hotel Owners With Protection For "Brand Damage" From Guest Injuries, Food Poisoning And Health Risks"

The Hotel Reputation Protection 2.0 policy will protect hotels against a range of common causes of brand damage such as death or permanent physical disability of a guest, food poisoning and outbreaks of Norovirus and Legionnaire’s disease.

 The Willis-Kiln product will provide cover for lost revenue based on RevPAR figures. RevPAR is a performance metric used in the hotel industry to measure revenue per available room. The policy will also cover the cost of hiring a crisis management consultant following a potentially reputation damaging incident. Laurie Fraser, global markets leisure practice leader for Willis, said: “In the extremely competitive hotel industry, reputation accounts for approximately 30-40% of a business’s overall worth.

 Read more: http://www.insuranceage.co.uk/insurance-age/news/2116523/willis-kiln-launch-protection-policy-hotels#ixzz1aZw3mowj Insurance Age – Serving the broker community. Claim your free subscriptions today.

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by | October 10, 2011 · 5:13 am

Hospitality Industry Health And Safety Risks: Utah Hotel Housekeeper Hospitalized After Cart Causes "Bear Spray" Can To Discharge; Hotel Guests Evacuated To Ventilate Building

“…The woman was unable to open her eyes after being exposed to the spray, so she was taken to a hospital, Baldwin said. All guests at the hotel were evacuated for about a half hour while crews ventilated the building…”

A housekeeper was hospitalized Sunday after a can of bear spray discharged in the Marriott Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City. The woman was pushing her housekeeping cart on the 6th floor of the hotel, near 100 South and West Temple, when the cart bumped a can of bear spray that had been left on the floor of the hall.

The can sprayed when it was struck, shooting out a substance that “is like pepper spray, only 10 times stronger,” said Salt Lake City battallion fire chief Clair Baldwin. Investigators were trying to determine why the can was left in the hallway.

For more:  http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/52698974-78/spray-hotel-baldwin-bear.html.csp

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by | October 3, 2011 · 11:40 am

Hospitality Industry Health Risks: Two Workers Die Of Hydrogen Sulfide Gas Poisoning While Working On A Pump Storage Tank At A Maine Hotel

“…Autopsies of two workers who collapsed and died while repairing a submersible pump in a pump storage tank at a Kennebunkport, Maine, hotel on Sept. 27 reveals they were exposed to high levels of hydrogen sulfide gas… It is suspected that the men did not test the atmosphere before they entered the tank..”

 “…Hydrogen sulfide is given off by bacteria present in sewage and exposure quickly can lead to unconsciousness and death…”

The storage tank where the men were working is 9 feet below ground and approximately 4 feet high by 6 feet long by 5 feet wide. Neither man was wearing a respirator when the bodies were found.

Studley and Kemp were working near an employee of Nest and Sons, who was pumping out the underground tank. He left with a load of sewage and when he returned, the men were gone, even though their truck still was in the parking lot. At that point, a hotel employee reporting them missing and when pumping was resumed in the tank, one of the bodies surfaced. The tank was searched and the second body was found.

For more:  http://ehstoday.com/safety/confined_space_workers_killed_1003/

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by | September 16, 2011 · 6:32 pm

Hospitality Industry Lawsuit Risks: "Hotel Negligence" Lawsuits Are Proliferating To Include Hotel Physicians Who Provide Guests' Medical Care

“…Hotel negligence is so prevalent in a vacation destination like Florida, with so many people harmed, that an increasing amount of our practice focuses on so-called resort litigation…and the types of negligence are expanding…to cases involving hotel physicians — doctors with whom the hotels have arrangements, that are called in to care for hotel guests…”

 The problem, says Reboso, is that the hotels typically do not check the credentials of the doctors and house call services they provide to guests. “You don’t know if you’re getting the best doctor in Florida or the worst,” says the injury lawyer. “And neither does the hotel. It’s a recipe for disaster. The clients we’re representing in these kind of resort litigation lawsuits have been harmed by negligent medical care.”

Nor do the hotels give guests the real picture on prices, adds Reboso: “In one case we are handling, the hotel said the service would cost $600, while the credit card charge — which comes well after you’ve left the hotel — was $6,300. We have found plenty of other cases in Florida when a $500 charge suddenly turns into a $4,000 or $5,000 bill. Obviously, the hotel industry and the medical profession need to educate themselves about what is going on and do something about it.”

 

For more:  http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/9/prweb8793265.htm

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