What to do if you were injured at a bar, tavern or restaurant?
Injury at a Bar, Tavern or Restaurant
Restaurants and taverns are places where one can enjoy a night out socializing with people, while eating delicious food and drinking alcoholic beverages. However, they are also places where the mixture of alcohol and people can lead to incidents that cause serious injuries. Alcohol causes people to lose their inhibitions, and reduces their physical capabilities, which leads to falls and assaults, that may not have otherwise occurred.
Occupiers’s Liability Act
Under the Occupiers’ Liability Act in Ontario, restaurant and tavern owners are required to take reasonable measures to ensure people that come onto their property are reasonably safe while there. These reasonable measures should account for the fact that people on the property may be consuming alcohol and therefore have reduced faculties to traverse the property. Under the Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019, in Ontario, those who sell alcohol, can be liable for damages caused by the person to whom the alcohol was sold if the sold alcohol would intoxicate the person or increase the person’s intoxication so that the person would be in danger of causing injury or damage to themselves or another person. A lengthy sentence to explain the concept of overserving alcohol.
If someone suffers injuries from a fall while at a restaurant or tavern, they should immediately identify the hazard that caused the fall, as identifying the hazard is the first step in establishing fault under the Occupiers’ Liability Act. The hazard can stem from a situation creating unsafe premises, such as a slippery floor, or broken stairs. The hazard can also stem from a person being overserved alcohol, as the entire premises can become dangerous once a person is unable to safely walk from alcohol intoxication. If the hazard is a condition of the Premises, photographs should be taken of the hazard as soon as possible, to preserve the condition that led to the fall. Statements from witnesses should also be obtained to substantiate the injured person’s version of events that led to the injuries. These statements can help if photographs were not obtained, or if the injuries stem from overserving of alcohol.
The mixture of alcohol and people in restaurants and taverns can lead to social interactions of the unfriendly kind. Assaults frequently occur in these social settings. If one has been injured in an assault at a restaurant or tavern, the owner of the restaurant or tavern may be at fault and responsible for the injured person’s damages. Fault can be found if the overserving of alcohol contributed to the assault occurring or if the restaurant or tavern should have known the assault was likely to occur and failed to take reasonable measures to prevent it. Sometimes fault can be found if the owner of the restaurant or tavern failed to provide sufficient security given the amount of people, the makeup of the premises, and the presence of alcohol.
Recovering from serious injuries can be life changing and overwhelming. Pursuing a legal claim for damages may be required to ensure the injured person is adequately compensated.
Anyone who has suffered injuries while attending a restaurant or tavern should speak to a personal injury lawyer to understand their legal rights and options as soon as possible. The lawyers at Singer Kwinter specialize in personal injury claims and can assist with these types of claims.
