Miami Resort Injury Lawyer Blog

Have you ever walked into a hotel after a long day traveling only to hear a loud raucous party down the hall. Or, you hear the broken ice maker making that annoying clanking noise that is echoing through the hall.

For corporate jet-setters who need a good night's rest to propel them through on-the-road meetings and presentations, noisy hotel rooms can be the bane of their business trips.

Noise was the top hotel complaint cited by respondents in a 2011 survey of hotel guest satisfaction. It beat out smelly rooms, sluggish Web connections and rude staff.

Some hotels have taken a pro-active approach to combat the noisy room problem by having snore monitors patrol the hallways and also trying out snore absorption rooms.

Other irritants include slamming doors, chattering hotel staff, amorous couples next door, revving truck engines in the parking lot and leaking toilets.

Then there are bed bugs. Recently, we have seen an explosion of bed bug attacks on planes, in New York city, and in other hotels. Florida hotels have been cited for 81 infestations. This number includes 11 in Broward County and four in Palm Beach County. According to www.bedbugregistry.com Florida has 319 bug reports.

How about room service? Food poisoning at hotels is also on the rise.

Continue reading "Snore Monitors? Noisy Ice Makers? Bed Bugs? Top Nuisances for Hotel Guests." »

For many people, Halloween is a fun time to dress up in costumes, go trick-or-treating, attend parties, and eat yummy treats.

Halloween is not only a scary holiday, but it could be a dangerous one too for you and your loved ones. Therefore, it is important to plan ahead and use common sense when going trick or treating.

Below are tips to help make Halloween fun and safe for trick-or-treaters.

- Make sure your children are with you at all times. Never allow your children to enter a stranger's house, or even knock on a door without you present. There are some people in life that are not nice to kids, or that simply don't wish to participate in Halloween. So you have to be careful. Always make sure your children are within sight when you go out trick-or-treating with them.

- Crossing the street could be dangerous on Halloween. Therefore, please make sure to look both ways and in all directions to make sure that there are no cars coming. If the street has a stop light, wait until the cross walk light tells you that it is okay to cross. But always remember to check the street before crossing even if the cross walk light tells you it is okay to cross. And always hold your little one's hand while crossing the street.

- If your older children, or teenagers, are going out with friends, make sure you know where they are going and who they are going with.

- Fasten reflective tape to costumes and bags to help drivers see you.

- Hold a flashlight while trick-or-treating to help you see and others see you.

- Examine all treats for choking hazards and tampering before eating them. Limit the amount of treats you eat.

- Eat only factory-wrapped treats. Avoid eating homemade treats unless you know the cook well. This could help avoid food poisoning or biting into an apple with a razor blade in it.

And of course, above all else, have fun!

Happy Halloween to you and your family!

Continue reading "Halloween Safety Tips" »

Travelers beware: Germany is currently facing an E. coli outbreak. The outbreak has already led to the death of 25 people. Because of this outbreak many Americans are making the decision to cancel long-planned trips to Germany.

It was initially believed that the source of the outbreak is bean sprouts. However, nobody knows for sure what is causing this issue. Various organizations have issued the warning to avoid eating lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers in Germany.

Four Americans have already fallen ill with the rare strain of E. coli, which could be life-threatening if it affects the kidneys. The German tourist board is certainly not hiding the problem as it includes links on its website that are tracking the outbreak. Many German hotels and restaurants are still serving many food items which may be infected with E. coli.

While this is occurring abroad, Americans are no strangers to outbreaks of contaminated food. It's critical to understand that restaurants and hotels have the responsibility to serve food that is safe to eat. Apart from negligence, a business which serves food that is not fit for consumption can be found liable under a breach of warranty theory as well.

While many may be surprised by the warranty claims, Florida law treats food sales much like a TV or car sale. Food that is not safe for consumption may violate a warranty that applies to all goods sold by businesses - the warranty of fitness for a particular purpose. This warranty may also be violated if you are injured by the consumption of a foreign object in a food item.

Continue reading "American Travelers are Impacted by the Dangerous E. Coli Outbreak in Germany" »

You may have already heard of a recent lawsuit filed against Walt Disney Parks and Resorts prompted by the parents of a 4 year old child who was burned by nacho cheese that was allegedly served at an unsafe temperature. Many of you are probably reminded of the McDonald's hot coffee law suit. But before you think this is "ridiculous", let's discuss this case and the related to how a restaurant may serve food.

This young child was burnt by the nacho cheese that was placed in a paper cup. To keep from falling from an unstable chair, the young child grabbed onto the food tray holding the cheese. After grabbing onto the food tray, the cheese splashed onto the child's face.

According to the family's attorney, the cheese began to cause immediate burns on contact. As such, the lawsuit alleges that the cheese was served at an unsafe temperature and that the child has sustained permanent scarring.

So what duty do restaurants have to their patrons?

In Florida, when a diner orders and pays for food at a restaurant, "there is a sale of such of food, and there exists an implied warranty that the food so sold is reasonably fit for human consumption." Zabner v. Howard Johnson's, Inc., 201 So. 2d 824, 827 (Fla. 4th DCA 1967). This warranty arises because the consumer by ordering the food provides notice to the seller of the particular purpose for which the food is required and as such relies on the seller's skill and judgment in preparing such food. Id.

Here, it appears that the cheese was not reasonably fit for human consumption because it allegedly caused immediate burns on the child's face. When ordering a hot meal, its reasonably expected that the meal will be served at a hot or warm temperature. However, its not reasonably expected to be served so hot that it causes immediate burns upon contact. Food that is served at such temperature breaches the implied warranty that arises with the sale of foods.

If you have been injured in an accident, or food poisioning, please contact our office today for an initial free case evaluation and to discuss your rights.

As you're standing in line at the omelette station either on a cruise ship or a resort, you're most likely thinking of what you want to put in your omelette, rather than what already might be in it. USA Today is reporting that an FDA investigation has discovered that two egg producers having been feeding their chickens feed contaminated with salmonella.

The Center for Disease Control reports that there are close to 1,500 individuals who have become ill due to salmonella-contaminated eggs, and other food poisoning. Tests show that the contaminated feed is a source of the outbreak, but the possibility of other sources exists. The FDA is also looking into the entirety of facilities because the contamination in the feed could be a part of a bigger problem.

Food poisoning is the result of eating organisms or toxins in contaminated food, such as salmonella-contaminated eggs . Most cases of food poisoning are from common bacteria such as Staphylococcus or E. coli. The general symptoms of food poisoning generally occur within two to six hours of it being in the contaminated food, but in some instances the symptoms may not appear for hours, or days, later.

Food poisoning symptoms include, but are not limited to, abdominal cramps, diarrhea, fever and chills, headaches, nausea and vomiting, weakness, and other more serious issues such as respiratory arrest, as in the case of botulism. If you feel that you are the victim of unfortunate food poisoning due to contaminated foods, then it is imperative that you immediately seek medical attention.

As for the recall, eggs from Hillandale Farms and Wright County Egg are subject to the FDA recall. Although the FDA doesn't expect the recall to grow beyond the two farms, the number of those who fall to salmonella is expected to increase. The FDA advises that thoroughly cooking eggs can kill the bacteria, but still recommends that consumers stay away from eggs from these two farms.

If you have been injured in an accident, or food poisioning, please contact our office today for an initial free case evaluation and to discuss your rights.

So, when you finally get to put your order in make sure you tell the chef, "Hold the salmonella, please."

The Federal Government is vigorously working to ensure that seafood, from the Gulf of Mexico, contaminated by the BP oil spill does not cause further damage and reach our dinner tables. It should come as no surprise that the contaminated fish may result in severe food poisoning if consumed.

Many restaurants, and other public establishments, may be serving seafood from the Gulf of Mexico that has been contaminated by the BP oil spill. This contaminated seafood will likely cause many individuals to fall seriously sick.

Food poisoning is the result of eating organisms or toxins in contaminated food. Most cases of food poisoning are from common bacteria such as Staphylococcus or E. coli. The general symptoms of food poisoning generally occur within two to six hours of it being the contaminated food, but in some instances the symptoms may not appear for hours, or days, later.

Food poisoning symptoms include, but are not limited to, abdominal cramps, diarrhea, fever and chills, headaches, nausea and vomiting, weakness, and other more serious issues such as respiratory arrest, as in the case of botulism.

The seafood from the Gulf of Mexico is not the only food product that can cause food poisoning these days. Indeed, and just recently, many Subway restaurants in Illinois were targeted as a result of a food borne illness outbreak. Many local hotels, and popular dining establishments, have also been the recent sites of increased food poisoning complaints.

Continue reading "BP Oil Spill Contaminating the Food Supply and Causing Food Poisoning" »