‘If the hotels won’t do their jobs, it’s our duty to inform their guests’
HOUSTON – Attorneys at Blizzard Law PLLC have developed a Hotel Safety Checklist in response to a recent surge of sexual assaults in hotel rooms.
VIDEO: For video of the attorneys discussing hotel safety, click here.
While it is primarily the responsibility of the hotel to provide a safe and secure experience for travelers, Blizzard Law attorneys have handled several cases in which hotel staff members and security failed to provide minimum safety standards that would have prevented sexual assaults and attempted sexual assaults of hotel guests.
The checklist is based on trends the firm has seen in handling these cases, including instances where hotel staff provided room keys to strangers who claimed to know the women staying in a hotel room, though they did not.
“Every single one of these cases could have been avoided if the hotels did their jobs,” said trial lawyer Anna Greenberg. “We created this list as a way to inform the public of the hotel industry’s shortfalls and remind travelers of the things they can do to minimize the risk.”
In 2021, Blizzard Law secured a $44 million verdict against Hilton Management LLC after jurors in Harris County found that hotel personnel placed a vulnerable guest in the room of a man who claimed to be accompanying her, leading to her sexual assault.
More recently, the firm secured a $950,000 settlement on behalf of a woman who narrowly escaped an assault in her hotel room by a man who had met her at a nearby bar, followed her back to the hotel and received a key to her room from the front desk.
The firm also has a lawsuit pending against the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Austin on behalf of a University of Texas student who was sexually assaulted in her room after hotel staff failed to cancel her lost room key, which was then picked up and used by her attacker.
“It’s shocking really,” said Ms. Greenberg. “These cases have been eye-opening for us as we fight for enhanced security measures on behalf of women and travelers. In the meantime, we hope this checklist helps.”
About Blizzard Law PLLC
Blizzard Law PLLC is an award-winning national trial firm with more than 40 years’ experience handling complex legal issues involving pharmaceutical and personal injury cases. For more information, visit www.blizzardlaw.com.
Media Contact:
Alyssa Woulfe
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