Booty Hotel Article

You can charge it on your hotel bill," Captain Joe explained to the tourist who wanted to rent a paddleboat at the beach. Rough weather ensued. The boat capsized. The renter later sued the hotel for injuries suffered due to failure to provide any basic safety instructions, a suitable life vest or a weather warning.

The hotel exposed itself to a "reasonable care" negligence lawsuit by allowing hotel guests to charge Captain Joe's bills to their accounts. And it didn't help their case that the hotel also received a commission from Captain Joe. When it looks like a duck and flies like a duck... it's usually a duck. Guests reasonably could conclude Captain Joe's paddleboat rentals were an extension of the hotel's hotel distributed his ads, allowed guests to charge his bill on their accounts and received commissions from those sales.

How would a guest possibly know that Captain Joe was not part of the hotel's operations? There was no signage reading, "Caution: all beach rental vendors have no connection with the hotel." When a hotel insinuates by its conduct that it is the operator of a side business, the courts might later prevent it from claiming it is not. If guests are led to believe they are dealing with the hotel, they are entitled to the common law standard of "reasonable care" for their safety. As far as guests know, they aren't just dealing with a "guy on the beach," but a hotel representative.

Guests can aim their lawsuit at Captain Joe, but chances are Joe doesn't have a dime or an insurance policy to collect against. The hotel, on the other hand, does, and can be targeted.

Don't lead guests to believe you are the owner and operator of an enterprise if you aren't. And if you aren't, make certain your guests know it.

A Florida jury recently nailed a hotel spa over a botched manicure. A federal jury ordered The Breakers in Palm Beach to pay a South Carolina woman $847,000 for negligence. Allegedly, the manicure mishap caused a severe thumb infection that required two surgeries and eight days of hospitalization. The jury found beautician's errors and unsanitary conditions led to the woman's infection.

If your hotel has a spa, do you operate it or is it an independent contractor? If it's not yours, is it legally not yours? Never allow someone to do business on your premises without consulting your lawyer to make certain you have immunity from damage awards or appropriate and adequate insurance coverage.

"I'd like to rent a dirt bike," the guest told the valet, who also was running a bike tour outfit. The guest's skills weren't up to the steep, rough trail and he took a tumble and suffered serious injuries. He sued the hotel. What he didn't know was that the business was operated independently by a group of valet car parkers who pooled their tips to purchase the bikes.

"They gave the renter a dirt bike path map, but no one told him that only experienced riders should take that route," a hotel employee explained to me. But from all appearances, the bike concession was part of the hotel's operations. The hotel managers, being nice, had allowed these "budding entrepreneurs" to bill guest accounts on charge slips signed by the renters.

All considered, the hotel's relationship with the vendors was enough to enable a lawsuit against the hotel. The injured rider's lawyer argued the liability disclaimer he signed wasn't worth much in light of the fact the rider was never asked if he had dirt bike experience, was never informed of the severity of the trail and was never given a helmet. The hotel will be backpedaling uphill to convince a jury it wasn't in the bike business, or negligent.

The car rental sign above the desk in the hotel's lobby reads, "Budget." All papers tendered for signature have the Budget logo. The attendant even wears a Budget shirt. There's no confusion here. Even though the hotel rents Budget the space, it does not hold itself out as the owner and operator of Budget, or its agent. A guest claiming they thought they were renting a car from the hotel and not Budget is driving up a dead end.

To avoid confusion, hoteliers must provide conspicuous public notice stating the subject vendor is solely responsible for all injuries sustained and is in no way connected to the hotel. They should back this notice up by not engaging in any practices that might suggest otherwise: Don't take reservations for dirt bike rides, don't allow independent beach vendors or others to let guests bill on their hotel account and, where appropriate, place warning signs to notify guests that specific vendors are not associated with the hotel.

Captain Joe has paddled on... no doubt to calmer seas beside another beach hotel. But he might as well be flying a pirate flag, because if that next hotel allows him hotel-billing privileges and another injury lawsuit ensues, that property just handed Captain Joe's passengers a treasure map to their own booty.

Anthony Marshall, dean emeritus of Florida International University, has practiced hospitality law, focusing on issues of safety and security, for almost 25 years. He can be reached at .