You’re out to dinner on Las Olas Boulevard. Or grabbing lunch on Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach. Having drinks at a bar in Hollywood or Wynwood, ready for a good night out.
Then something goes wrong. You slip on a wet floor nobody marked. A chair collapses under you. Severe food poisoning from spoiled food. A server pours boiling soup across your lap. A drink served to you that’s dangerously hot. You end up in a confrontation with another patron and the bar staff watches it happen.
Now you’re injured. Medical bills pile up. You want to know if the restaurant or bar has to pay. In Florida, the answer is usually yes. But you need to understand what makes them liable and what evidence proves it.
Restaurants and Bars Owe Guests a Duty of Care
When you walk into a restaurant or bar in Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, or anywhere in South Florida, that business has a legal obligation to keep the premises reasonably safe. Florida statute § 768.075 defines this duty of care. They maintain the building. Keep walkways clear. Warn customers about hazards. Ensure food is safe to eat.
The duty covers wet floors to broken chairs to spoiled food to dangerous drink temperatures. If the restaurant knew or should have known about a hazard and didn’t fix it or warn you, they’re liable when someone gets hurt.
The key phrase: “should have known.” You don’t have to prove the manager personally saw the spill. You just have to show that a reasonably attentive operator would have discovered it. Regular inspections. Employee reports. Customer complaints. The passage of time. Any of that suggests they should have known.
Common Restaurant and Bar Injuries
Slip and Fall Accidents
These are most common. Wet floors from spills, kitchen overflow, restrooms, entrances. Slippery surfaces from grease or condensation. Food items on the floor. Loose tiles or broken flooring. The restaurant is liable if they didn’t clean it up, didn’t dry it, didn’t post a warning, or didn’t know about it for an unreasonably long time. Under § 768.0755, Florida actually favors property owners hereâwe have to prove constructive notice. But strong circumstantial evidence of timing gets us there.
Burns and Scalding
Hot soup spilled by a careless server. Coffee served without warning about the temperature. Grease splatter from the kitchen. Plates so hot they burn skin. Faulty equipment. Burns are serious. They require medical treatment. They leave permanent scars. Restaurants have a duty to handle hot items safely and to warn customers when something is especially hot. A split-second of inattention from staff can cause permanent injury.
Food Poisoning and Foodborne Illness
Contaminated ingredients. Improperly stored food. Undercooked meat. Cross-contamination. A restaurant that ignores basic food safety and someone gets sickâthat’s a valid claim. You need medical records showing you got food poisoning. You need to establish that the restaurant’s food was the source. It’s harder than slip and fall, but possible with the right investigation. We look at health inspection reports. Prior violations. We establish timeline and medical causation.
Broken or Defective Furniture
A chair that collapses. A table that’s unstable. A booth bench with broken springs. Restaurants have to maintain furniture in safe condition. If they know a chair is broken and keep using it anyway, or if reasonable inspection would have discovered the defect, they’re liable.
Inadequate Maintenance
Crumbling ceilings. Loose trim or fixtures. Broken stairs or railings. Inadequate lighting in hallways or stairwells. A basic safe space to sit and eat requires maintenance. Neglecting that creates liability.
South Florida Restaurant Landscape: From upscale Las Olas dining to casual Riverwalk bistros, from Boca Raton’s fine dining to Delray Beach’s Atlantic Avenue to Wynwood’s trendy spotsârestaurants vary widely in safety practices. The same liability rules apply regardless of whether it’s a steakhouse or a casual spot.
Florida Food Safety Regulations and Your Claim
Florida has detailed food safety regulations. Proper food storage temperatures. Hand washing. Separate cutting boards. When a restaurant violates these regulations and someone gets sick, that violation is evidence of negligence.
We request health inspection reports for the restaurant where you got sick. Recent violationsâespecially for the type of food that made you sickâare powerful evidence. Same violation repeatedly over time? Even better. Shows they knew about the problem and didn’t fix it.
Food poisoning claims require proving the restaurant’s food was the source of your illness, not something you ate elsewhere. We investigate your timeline. What did you eat before the restaurant? What did you eat there? When did symptoms start? What did other people who ate the same thing experience? Timeline is everything.
Proving the Restaurant’s Negligence
To win a restaurant injury case, you need to prove four things under Florida law:
- The restaurant had a duty to keep the premises safe â This is automatic. They owed you a duty of care.
- They breached that duty â They failed to maintain the property, failed to warn you, failed to clean up, or served unsafe food.
- That breach caused your injury â The wet floor caused your slip, the hot liquid caused your burn, the spoiled food caused your illness.
- You suffered actual damages â Medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, permanent injury.
The Hard Part: How Long Should They Have Known?
In most slip and fall cases, the question is whether the restaurant should have known about the hazard. Did they have time to discover it through reasonable inspection? Or did it just happen moments before you slipped?
We look for evidence showing how long the hazard was there. Surveillance footage is bestâit shows exactly when the spill happened. Witness testimony helps. Did other customers step around it? Was an employee nearby? Did employees clean that area recently? All of it suggests they should have seen it.
I handled a case at a busy Las Olas restaurant where a customer slipped on spilled oil near the kitchen entrance. We got surveillance footage showing the oil had been there at least 45 minutes before the injury. The kitchen was active. Employees walked past that spot multiple times. That’s clear negligence.
Bar and Nightlife Injuries
Bars and nightclubs have an additional responsibility under Florida law. They can’t serve alcohol to someone who is obviously intoxicated or to minors. If a bar serves someone visibly drunk, and then that person gets injured or injures someone else, the bar might be liable. That’s dram shop liability.
But it’s narrow. Under Florida statute § 768.125, a bar is only liable for dram shop claims if they served alcohol to a person under 21 or to someone “habitually addicted” to alcohol. They’re not liable just because someone had one too many and got hurt. This is Florida lawânot every state is this restrictive.
That said, bars have a duty to maintain safe premises and to control aggressive behavior. If a bar knows a patron is becoming hostile and doesn’t do anything, and that patron attacks you, the bar might be liable for failing to protect you. Same with excessive force by a bouncer.
Restaurant and Bar Insurance
Most restaurants and bars carry liability insurance. That’s what pays your claim. We investigate early to find out what insurance is in place. We also look for workers’ compensation insurance if you were injured while working at the restaurant.
The insurance company usually gets involved once notified. They’ll defend the restaurant in court or negotiate a settlement. Either way, they’re funding your recovery, not the individual restaurant owner.
Your Right to Compensation
If you prove the restaurant or bar is liable, you recover damages for:
- All medical expenses related to your injuryâemergency care, surgery, physical therapy, ongoing treatment
- Lost wages during recovery and any reduced earning capacity from permanent injury
- Pain and suffering from the physical pain and emotional distress
- Scarring, disfigurement, or permanent disability
- Any other costs directly caused by the injury
The amount depends on how serious your injury is. A minor burn that heals in weeks is different from a severe third-degree burn. A slip that causes a bruise is different from one that breaks a leg. We gather medical evidence to show the true impact on your life.
The 2-Year Deadline
You have two years from the date of your injury to file a lawsuit in Florida. After that, your claim is barred. Under § 95.11, that statute of limitations is firm. We typically recommend contacting us within the first few weeks of your injury so we can investigate while evidence is fresh. Photos of the hazard, witness contact information, surveillance footage, medical records, maintenance logsâall of it needs to be gathered quickly before it disappears.
What to Do If You’re Injured at a Restaurant or Bar
- Report the incident to a manager immediately and insist it be documented
- Take photos of the hazard that caused your injury from multiple angles
- Get the names and contact information of any witnesses
- Get a copy of the incident report from the restaurant
- Seek medical attention and keep all medical records and bills
- Document how your injury affects your daily life and activities
- Don’t sign anything or agree to a settlement without consulting a lawyer first
- Contact us within a few weeks for a free consultation
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the restaurant have to know about the hazard for me to sue?
Not exactly. They have to know, or should have known through reasonable inspection, that the hazard existed. If a spill happened moments before your slip and the restaurant couldn’t have reasonably discovered it, they’re not liable. But if the spill was there long enough that an attentive operation would have found it, they’re liable.
What if I was partially at fault for my own injury?
Florida uses comparative fault. If you were 30% at fault and the restaurant was 70% at fault, you recover 70% of your damages. But if you’re more than 50% at fault, you get nothing. The case becomes about proving the restaurant’s negligence was the main problem, not your carelessness.
Can I sue if the restaurant’s sign said “Wet Floor” but I still slipped?
A wet floor sign helps the restaurant’s case, but it doesn’t necessarily eliminate liability. If the floor was extremely slippery, if you couldn’t reasonably see the sign, if you were redirected through a wet area that wasn’t marked, or if the hazard was something other than just water, a sign might not be enough. We evaluate the specific circumstances.
How long do these cases usually take?
Most restaurant and bar injury cases settle within 6 to 12 months once we’ve gathered evidence and made a demand. Some require mediation or trial. The exact timeline depends on the severity of your injury and how cooperative the insurance company is.
What if the restaurant claims I assumed the risk by eating there?
That’s not a valid defense in Florida. You don’t assume the risk of the restaurant’s negligence by choosing to dine there. You have a right to expect the restaurant to follow basic safety standards. That’s what our duty of care law requires.
Restaurants and bars need to be held accountable for putting customers at risk. Let us help you get the compensation you deserve.