Were You Injured While Staying at an Airbnb or Vrbo Rental?
Instead of renting a hotel, booking an Airbnb or Vrbo is a popular alternative for those hoping to avoid big, faceless hotels. Typically, hosts rent out a room or their entire house, and guests use an app to book the space and pay. What happens if you are injured during your stay? Any number of things could go wrong, and some premises are dangerous. You can incur huge medical bills to treat injuries suffered in a preventable accident, if only the house owner had been more careful. Call Snyder Heitman Injury Attorneys to talk about different legal options.
How We Negotiate Settlements
Some of the more common Vrbo or Airbnb accidents involve:
- Defective stairs and guardrails. You could fall and injure yourself.
- Dangerous appliances. These defective appliances can electrocute users or cause a fire.
- Outdated wiring. Poor wiring can lead to a house fire or electrocution.
- Rotted floorboards. A guest could fall through the floor and be injured when they land in the basement.
- Missing or malfunctioning smoke detectors. Renters could fail to escape a burning house in time.
- Unfenced or dangerous pools or hot tubs. A small child could fall in the water and suffer injuries.
If anyone in your family is hurt, head to the nearest hospital. Also remember to photograph the hazard that caused the accident. For example, if you tripped after stepping in a pothole in the driveway, then you should take a picture of the pothole. The same is true if there is a fire or you are electrocuted by an exposed wire. Photographs and videos help establish the dangerous hazard exists.
The legal question is how to obtain financial compensation. Both Airbnb and Vrbo offer hosts liability coverage, with policies up to $1 million. That type of coverage can pay for medical care, replace any lost income, and compensate accident victims for their bodily pain and mental anguish.
However, this liability coverage has all kinds of exclusions, so your accident might not be covered. Meet with an attorney who can review any applicable insurance policy. The host could also have homeowner’s insurance separate from the Airbnb or Vrbo liability coverage that might cover an accident.
Although you should report the accident to the host, avoid lengthy discussions or narratives about what happened. At least, meet with an experienced premises liability lawyer first. We can assist anyone in the Greenville or Spartanburg areas with their legal claims
It is critical to hire a local lawyer who can more easily access the premises and negotiate with the host or their insurance company. Waiting until you return home to hire a lawyer could result in evidence disappearing and problems winning a case.
Call Snyder Heitman Injury Attorneys for a Free Consultation
We know that dangerous properties injure thousands of people in South Carolina. The owner should take care to fix hazards or at least warn you of those which are hard to see. Contact our office to schedule a free consultation with a Greenville premises liability lawyer. We also help those injured in Spartanburg and Upstate South Carolina.
Source:
vrbo.com/tlp/liability-insurance