Siddhartha Bhimrajka had booked several rooms in a prominent five star resort and spa in South Goa. One of the invitees was Vinay Rajpal, a 29-year-old businessman and his wife Ravina, reports Jehangir Gai in ‘The Times of India’.

Two days later, on the day of the wedding, they attended a pool-side lunch. Though alcohol was served, they did not drink any. After returning to their room, Vinay went for a shower.

The bathroom had three steps to go down to the bathing area, with a handle bar on the right. On the second step, Vinay slipped badly and fell on his face, resulting in severe fractures in his jaw.

Vinay was taken to the Apollo Victor Hospital, and then flown by a chartered Air Ambulance Service to Mumbai and admitted in Jaslok Hospital.

Then Vinay sent a legal notice to the hotel for compensation, and followed up with reminders. The hotel's insurers contested the claim and denied any negligence on the part of the hotel.

In September 2007, Vinay filed a consumer complaint before the Goa State Consumer Commission, claiming a compensation of Rs30 lakh.

After a detailed hearing, the commission, presided over by Justice Britto and Member Prabhudesai, on 25 January 2012, ordered the hotel to compensate Vinay.

The judgment said that photographs revealed it was a sunken bathroom that could be used as a shower as well as a bathtub and, to reach it, three slanting steps had to be climbed down without proper support.

As there was no support for descending the slanting polished marble steps, the judgment concluded, the bathroom design disregarded the safety of the guests, as even the slightest wetness on a polished marble floor can be extremely dangerous.

The commission awarded reimbursement of medical expenses, cost of the chartered air ambulance, notional loss of income at Rs3,750 per month for three months, and compensation for the pain and trauma of inserting titanium plate implants and requiring the jaw to be wired shut for 10 days.