You came to Fort Lauderdale to relax — not to get hurt on a wet pool deck, a broken stair, or a dark parking lot. As your Fort Lauderdale hotel accident lawyer, Robert DiStefano holds hotels and resorts accountable when their carelessness leaves you injured. Whether you live here or you were just visiting, you can still bring a claim.
Hotels and resorts make money by inviting you in. Under Florida law, that invitation comes with a duty to keep you reasonably safe — and to warn you about dangers they know about or should have caught. When a property cuts corners on housekeeping, lighting, pool safety, or security, guests get hurt.
A Fort Lauderdale hotel accident lawyer steps in when a resort's carelessness turns your trip into an injury. We handle slip-and-falls on wet lobby floors and pool decks, falls on broken stairs and loose railings, drownings and near-drownings in poorly guarded pools, injuries from failing balconies, and assaults that happen because a hotel ignored its own security problems. These are not "accidents" in the everyday sense — they happen because someone whose job was to keep the property safe did not do it.
The hotel's insurance company moves fast after an incident. An adjuster may call you in the hospital, ask for a recorded statement, or offer a quick check that does not come close to covering your medical bills and lost time. You do not have to talk to them alone. Robert DiStefano has spent more than 40 years going up against insurers, and he reads these tactics the moment they start.
There is no fee to find out where you stand. Your case review is free, confidential, and same-day — and if we take your case, you pay nothing unless we recover for you.
Hotel claims turn on a handful of specific Florida rules. Here are the ones that most often decide whether — and how much — a guest recovers.
Fla. Stat. § 768.0755
If you slip on a wet floor or spilled liquid in a hotel that is open to the public, you generally must show the property knew or should have known the hazard was there and did nothing. That can come from how long the spill sat, or from a pattern of the same thing happening before. We move quickly to pull housekeeping logs and video before they disappear.
Fla. Stat. § 768.0706 enacted 2023
For apartment and certain multi-unit lodging, Florida now lists specific safety steps — lighting, locks, cameras — that, if met, can give the owner a presumption against liability for a criminal attack on the property. The flip side matters for guests: when a hotel skips basic security, that failure is squarely on the table.
Fla. Stat. § 768.81 amended 2023
Florida uses modified comparative negligence. Your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault — and under the 2023 reform, if you are found more than 50% at fault, you recover nothing. Hotels lean hard on this rule to blame the guest, which is exactly why how your case is framed early matters.
Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4)(a) amended 2023
For injuries caused by negligence, the 2023 reform shortened the deadline to two years from the date you were hurt. Miss it and your claim is usually gone for good. For visitors who fly home after a trip, that clock is easy to lose track of — so it is best to talk to a lawyer early.
This page provides general information about Florida law and is not legal advice. Statutes and case law change; your specific case requires a consultation.
Tourism is the engine of this city, and the places people get hurt are not a mystery to us. We work injury claims across the beachfront, the A1A strip, and the cruise-port hotels — and we know how those properties operate.
A resort's job is simple: keep the people it invited in from getting hurt. When it doesn't, the bill shouldn't land on you.
At a lot of firms, your case gets passed to a case manager you never meet. That is not how this office works. Robert DiStefano has practiced Florida personal-injury law for more than 40 years, and he handles hotel and resort claims personally — from the first call through settlement or trial. When you call, you reach the lawyer working your file.
You pay nothing up front. Hotel injury cases are handled on a contingency fee, which means no fee unless we recover for you. The hotel and its insurer have lawyers from day one. You should too — at no cost to find out what your claim is worth.
Tell us what happened by phone or form. We respond the same day, Monday through Friday — confidential and with no obligation.
Hotel video and maintenance logs get overwritten fast. We move to lock down evidence and identify every responsible party before it is gone.
You focus on healing. Robert handles the adjusters, the paperwork, and the negotiation — and is ready to file suit if they won't be fair.
Hotel injuries are one part of our broader premises liability practice. If your injury was a fall on a slick floor, see how we handle a slip and fall claim; if it happened in the water, our work on swimming pool injuries covers it. You can also read about Robert DiStefano's background or reach the office directly.
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Your case review costs nothing and stays confidential. No fee unless we recover for you.
(954) 572-8000