Elements of Negligence Negligence claims are successful if the plaintiff can be able to prove all the elements required for a successful action in a court of law. Failure to prove all the elements will result to the suit being defeated on the grounds of insufficiency of evidence.
A plaintiff has got to:
a). Prove a duty of care. This is outlined in the case of Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] UKHL 100, [1932] SC (HL) 31 which set precedent of fault principle in Common law.
b). Breach of duty. A plaintiff must show that the defendant knowingly exposed the plaintiff to a loss or risk that is substantial. This should include overlooking acts that a reasonable person would have done to avert the risk but the defendant failed to do. This is illustrated in the case of Bolton v Stone 1 K.B. 201 (C.A. 1950).
c). Factual Causation or Direct Cause. The plaintiff must show that the defendant’s omissions and acts directly caused the damages or losses that were suffered.
d). Harm. Even if a plaintiff can successfully prove all the above, he has to prove that he suffered some harm as a result of the defendants negligence. The negligence must have caused a pecuniary injury.
Case against the Hotel The hotel owed a duty of care to all its customers. Provision of security by the hotel justifies this point. Clients are not asked to provide their own security by the hotel. The hotel breached this duty by failing to realize that intruders got into the hotel and unlocked the hotel room doors, grabbed Mr. Margreiter and dragging him out of his room. The hotel has got security cameras fitted in hallways and at the entrances and exits of the hotel. Therefore, failing to see the plaintiff being dragged by the attackers is an act of omission on the hotel’s part. Mr. Margreiter suffered injuries after being severely beaten by his attackers and there are medical reports to back up his