Who is responsible for injuries in a hotel pool?

The use of any swimming pool comes with inherent risks. However, property owners must comply with the requirements of California law to keep their property free of dangerous conditions.

A person who suffers an injury in a hotel pool may receive compensation if the property owner’s negligence resulted in that person’s injuries.

Examples of negligence

Hotel owners must comply with regulations for hotel pools and hot tubs. California law may consider a hotel owner to be negligent if one or more conditions occur:

• Floors are unreasonable slippery
• Pool deck has holes or cracks
• Provides unrestricted access to children
• Violations of California regulations occurred
• Defects in pool construction
• Debris or other hazards around the pool
• Improper pool maintenance

Hotel pool-related personal injury claims

Depending on the cause of the injury or illness, a plaintiff can base a claim on negligence, premises liability or product liability. Most hotel pool claims are premises liability claims. The injured party may have a premises liability case against the hotel owner if the hotel failed to post required warning signs, the pool did not have required supervision or the pool lacked required safety equipment.

If the injury occurred because of the negligence of the hotel staff, pool designers or pool installers, then the injured party may have a negligence claim. A product liability claim may apply if a defect in the manufacture or design of the pool causes an injury.

The use of a swimming pool comes with an assumption of risk; however, hotel owners have a duty to maintain safe conditions in and around their pool areas.