Hotels are Required to Protect Their Customers from the Criminal Conduct of others

Under the law of Pennsylvania hotels have a duty to protect their customers from the criminal acts of others. According to the Restatement (Second) of Torts, Section 344, which has been adopted as the law of Pennsylvania: A possessor of land who holds it open to the public for entry for his business purposes is subject to liability to members of the public while they are upon the land for such a purpose, for physical harm caused by the accidental, negligent, or intentionally harmful acts of third persons or animals, and by the failure of the possessor to exercise reasonable care to (a) discover that such acts are being done or are likely to be done, or (b) give a warning adequate to enable the visitors to avoid the harm, or otherwise to protect them against it. Comment d to this Section adds: d. Reasonable care. A public utility or other possessor of land who holds it open to the public for entry for his business purposes is not an insurer of the safety of such visitors against the acts of third persons, or the acts of animals. He is, however, under a duty to exercise reasonable care to give them protection. In many cases a warning is sufficient care if the possessor reasonably believes that it will be enough to enable the visitor to avoid the harm, or protect himself against it. There are, however, many situations in which the possessor cannot reasonably assume that a warning will be sufficient. He is then required to exercise reasonable care to use such means of protection as are available, or to provide such means in advance because of the likelihood that third persons, or animals, may conduct themselves in a manner which will endanger the safety of the visitor. Under Section 344, therefore, hotels owe a duty to their guest to take reasonable precaution against harmful third party conduct that might be reasonably anticipated. Some of the cases against hotels arise from: criminals breaking into your hotel room and robbing and/or assaulting you failure to provide adequate security failure to provide adequate security personnel and equipment, failure to warn their guests of the danger of criminal assault failure to inspect and repair hotel room doors failure to limit and/or monitor access to the hotel premises For a free review of your case, contact the hotel injury attorneys, serving Pittsburgh, Greensburg, Washington, PA, Uniontown, Erie, Altoona, and all of Pennsylvania.