Can a travel agent be held responsible for the actions of a guest while on vacation?
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Can a travel agent be held responsible for the actions of a guest while on vacation?
If I am a travel agent and a person books a hotel room through my company and than the client does damage to the hotel room; can I be held responsible for payment of damages?
Asked on February 8, 2011 under Business Law, New Jersey
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
A travel agent is NOT responsible for the actions of guests at hotels except in the most extreme circumstances. By that, I mean that one could always posit some set of facts that would result in liability--e.g. the agent knows for a fact that this guest has trashed 6 or 7 hotel rooms in the past but notwithstanding that knowledge, booked the guest into a hotel; in that case, it might be possible to establish liability against the agent. Or if the agent is in some other responsible for the guest--the guest is the agent's minor child; the guest is also an employee of the agent; etc.--that might suffice. But in the normal situation of someone goes to a travel agent to book a hotel or trip, the agent does so, then the agent is not responsible what the guest then does (except if the agent signed any agreeement taking responsibility or agreeing to reimburse).
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