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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Location
    Concord, CA
    Posts
    3

    Default Is a Restaurant Liable for a Diabetic Patron's Medical Problems After Late Service

    My question involves an injury that occurred in the state of: California.

    I took my 87 yr. old mother and my daughter to a large chain restaurant on March 2, 2016. We arrived around 8 PM and were pleased to see that the restaurant wasn't busy. We seated ourselves and then waited about 20 minutes for the frazzled waitress to bring menus & table settings. About 20 minutes passed and I asked who I thought was the manager if we could possibly order. Our waitress appeared and took our orders. About 10 minutes after we ordered our meals my 87 yr. old mother took her Diabetic medication (orally) which only means she must eat within 30 to 40 minutes. Time was clicking away and I finally asked the manager if he could check on our orders. He returned looked ashamed and told us that our meal ticket was lost and that the kitchen will have to prepare our meals. I then asked if he could bring my mother some crackers or anything to nibble on. Never happened.

    She then began to experience signs of going into a diabetic coma. She was really getting bad and still no meals or no snacks. I couldn't even move her at that point and asked someone to call 911 (I didn't have my phone with me). Nobody ever did. About 40 minutes later our meals arrived but by then my mother was so distraught and experiencing terrible sweats, nausea, shaking terribly and was completely out of it. I forced her to eat something and still she was out of it. I again asked the manager to call 911 and he said he would. Never did. Finally I was able to get my mother out of the booth and demanded that they call Mall Security to bring a wheelchair to escort her to the car. I have photos of all this. I then called 911 myself upon our arrival home. To make a long story shorter I have been in contact with this restaurant and spoke to so many different people. Bottom line is that they apologized and continued saying how they didn't want to lose our business and would issue us a $50 dollar gift card. I was outraged that they thought that this is ok. I spoke to the GM of the restaurant we dined at and he assured me that my mothers episode was the topic of their meeting and how they would now implement measures in case this were to ever happen again to another customer.

    My question is this. Do I have a case? Should I take them to small claims court? The most I could sue for in small claims court is $10,000. I swear its not about the money but instead about how my mother could of died. This has never happened to her before that night and she hasn't been the same ever since. Any kind advice you could show me would be so appreciated. Thank you!!

  2. #2

    Default Re: Is the Restaurant Liable

    How did you not have a snack? You must feel awful.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Posts
    8,006

    Default Re: Is the Restaurant Liable

    A case for what? Someone who is diabetic should know to keep something with them at all times for these types of incidents. Why did you not simply get up and leave when the service was bad and your mom was having issues? Why not ask them for a soda as that is effective in these situations? Why not ask another customer to call 911 if the restaurant didn't?

    Was the service bad? Sure sounds so but you and your mom had plenty of options.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Location
    Concord, CA
    Posts
    3

    Default Re: Is the Restaurant Liable

    ???????

    We did in fact ask many times over for something to eat for her. Hell yes the service was bad. Options? No, we kept getting promises that something would be given to my mom any minute. Also, this has never happened to her before so she doesn't carry anything since this was a first time incident. There were no customers around us. The place was empty. I did call 911. Thanks anyway for your thoughts.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    California
    Posts
    20,594

    Default Re: Is the Restaurant Liable

    So, grandma wants to sue for $10,000? Doers she have receipts for that amount being her actual expenses?

    Small Claims is not about pain and suffering, it's about losses. About the most she could hope on the off chance she might prevail is her co-pay and out of pocket expenses. But, I would expect that if she was such a severe diabetic she should have snacks on hand just in case. I know a number of diabetics and they almost always have something on hand rather than rely upon someone else to provide food.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Location
    Concord, CA
    Posts
    3

    Default Re: Is the Restaurant Liable

    No, I don't feel awful since this type of thing has NEVER happened to my mother before.

    Thanks.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Posts
    38,867

    Default Re: Is the Restaurant Liable

    If she was so bad off why did you go home rather than directly to the ER?

    nobody made you stay and wait so long. You could have and should have taken her out of there rather than continuing to wait.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Posts
    8,006

    Default Re: Is the Restaurant Liable

    Quote Quoting SammieGirl
    View Post
    We did in fact ask many times over for something to eat for her.
    After a couple of times being ignored and my mom obviously starting to feel bad, I would be getting up and leaving rather than relying on empty promises. You should have been walking to the kitchen door and harassing every person who came out for something. Was there a bar in this place (I know a lot of the mall restaurants have them)?. You go to the bar if there is one and get something to eat or drink.

    Quote Quoting SammieGirl
    View Post
    Hell yes the service was bad. Options?
    You had options. You chose not to exercise them, despite seeing your mom's condition deteriorate.

    Quote Quoting SammieGirl
    View Post
    No, we kept getting promises that something would be given to my mom any minute.
    At some point, as adults, you have to throw the BS flag and leave.

    Quote Quoting SammieGirl
    View Post
    Also, this has never happened to her before so she doesn't carry anything since this was a first time incident.
    Well, it's a hard lesson to learn. I'm surprised her doctor never counseled her on it.

    Quote Quoting SammieGirl
    View Post
    There were no customers around us. The place was empty.
    No customers anywhere in the place? None? Start asking employees for phones. Go out into the mall and ask someone to call 911 or mall security. You should never rely 100% on strangers when you are capable of acting yourself.

    As pointed out, court is about damages. What damages were suffered?

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Posts
    8,238

    Default Re: Is the Restaurant Liable

    When I hear people say it’s not about the money, I’m very skeptical because the truth is it pretty much always is about the money. The restaurant pledged to make changes to avoid in the future the kind of problems you experienced here. So if making change in the world was what this was about then you have evidently accomplished that already. Moreover, if your mother sues (you have nothing to sue for because you weren’t the one having the diabetic attack, she was), money is the only remedy that is available to your mother.

    Putting aside for the moment whether your mother even has a good negligence case, let’s talk about the money. However outraged you are about this, all you mother can win is compensation for the actual damages she suffered. She cannot get anything for that might have happened but didn’t. She didn’t die, so she gets no compensation for that. She evidently didn’t end up suffering any serious harm from this since you failed to mention any significant harm. So what were her damages? What was the result of the 911 call? Did she have to go the hospital? Does she have any medical bills? If she’s not out any money because of this and suffered no permanent injury then she has nothing she could win in a lawsuit even if the restaurant was negligent.

    Let’s turn now to the issue of negligence. In order to win a lawsuit for negligence your mother would have to show the court that the restaurant owed your mother some duty, that it breached that duty, and that as a result of that breach she suffered some legally recognized harm. Restaurants have no legal duty to provide you good service. They have no legal duty to provide you snacks when asked for them. They have no duty to call 911 for you. Those are all nice things that the restaurant could have (and perhaps should have) done for good customer service but the law does not impose a duty on the restaurant to do those things. I realize that sounds cold, but that’s the way things are. So what duty, exactly, can your mother assert the restaurant owed her that it failed to provide? I don’t see anything obvious here.

    Finally, there is the problem of contributory negligence. Knowing that your mother could suffer this kind of problem, she should take steps to prepare for it. She should have a proper snack. She ought to have a cell phone to call 911. She should not have to rely on a restaurant to supply those things. If she was prepared herself this would not have been a problem, and that can provide the restaurant a defense even if it might have been negligent. That defense may lower what she would win or even completely eliminate it.

    I understand this not what you want to hear. And I am not unsympathetic to your mother’s plight. It’s unfortunate she had to deal with this. But you have to be realistic in what others are responsible to do and what you can get in lawsuit. They are not lotteries to win huge awards for little or no damages.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Location
    in alto mare
    Posts
    1,123

    Default Re: Is the Restaurant Liable

    I have never heard of a diabetic (especially one who uses insulin) who does not carry a snack or some hard candy with them when out and about. Doctors advise it. You don't wait until something has happened to take steps to protect yourself.

    She should also wear a medical alert ID bracelet.

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