Fattal Hotel Chain Ordered to Compensate Parents After Toddler's Injury

A Tel Aviv court has ruled that the Fattal hotel chain must compensate the parents of a toddler who broke his arm at a children's club in the Leonardo Club Hotel in Tiberias. The incident occurred in August 2014 when the then three-and-a-half-year-old child was playing in the hotel's "supervised" kids' club and fell while climbing a slide, fracturing his elbow.

The court found the hotel negligent, stating it created a "false impression of supervision" by marketing the club as a safe, staffed, and monitored play area. The judge noted that the supervisor, reportedly only 14 years old, was not present when the child fell, and the hotel failed to enforce basic safety procedures or parental supervision rules. The hotel also failed to call key witnesses, such as the supervisor and security officer, to testify.

However, the court also assigned 30% of the responsibility to the parents, deeming their actions a "turning a blind eye" and a breach of their natural duty of care. The parents had left the children's club simultaneously, with the mother going to breastfeed and the father leaving to get her water, leaving the toddler unsupervised.

As a result of the shared responsibility, the hotel was ordered to pay 70% of the damages. The total compensation awarded to the parents, including legal fees and expenses, amounts to approximately 158,750 shekels. The hotel's share of this sum is about 135,000 shekels.

Lawyers noted that the ruling is unusual in personal injury cases, as courts typically avoid holding parents financially liable. The decision clarifies that admitting a child to a hotel play area does not absolve parents of active supervision.