Legal Question in Personal Injury in North Carolina

We were staying at a national hotel chain last week in NC and my 7yr. old daughter was mixing hot chocolate at a self-serve station in the hotel. While she was stirring it she spilt the whole cup of hot water down her checst and stomach. She recieved 1st degree burns (thank god they weren't worse) and a life-gaurd and then EMT's treated her at the scene. We declined having her transported to the hospital in the ambulance and took her ourselves to an emergency clinic. After waiting 2 hours we walked out with-out seeing a Dr. because by that time most of the reddness had gone away except for a 5in. round spot on her chest. We brought her to her Dr. the next day when we got home and the Dr. said to just keep an eye on it. She has one little spot of 2nd. degree burn and the rest is 1st degree. My wife and I have never suied anybody as we are not like that but after thinking about it for a few days I was wondering if there was any legal recourse in the situation? My daughter suffered terribly and the hotel really shouldn't allow children of any age to be mixing thier own hot liquid drinks. Thank god again it didn't pour down on her head and face. Thank-you for your time.


Asked on 8/15/09, 8:43 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
John Kirby Law Offices of John M. Kirby

You (or your daughter) has a claim only if the hotel was negligent. Based on these facts, it is not clear that the hotel was negligent. More specifically, it is not clear how they can keep children out of that area. Also, in some way or another, the hotel would argue that the child's parents have some responsibility to watch their own child, and that the parents can assess the child's safety (and keep the child from that area if warranted). If, however, there is a design flaw that contributed to the incident (e.g. the table was not level), or if the coffee was too hot, then your daughter might have a claim. (Also note: some businesses have "med pay" or "medical payments" coverage, that will pay for a portion of the medical bills.) You of course might want to consult with an attorney in your area and provide him or her with more information to give you some more thorough thoughts on this.

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Answered on 8/17/09, 10:18 am


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