She was at a Hilton Head restaurant for a wine tasting dinner. Here’s why she’s suing

A Beaufort County woman was leaving Carrabba’s Italian Grill on Hilton Head in October 2016 when she said she tripped on a speed bump and fell in the parking lot, according to a lawsuit.

Now, she’s suing the restaurant for inadequate lighting and negligence.

Carol Hafner has filed a lawsuit for $31,000 against the Italian restaurant chain, according to court documents in the Beaufort County 14th Judicial Circuit filed last month.

However, on Dec. 14, the restaurant’s lawyers responded with an 11-part answer to Hafner’s claims, which argues she is also at fault for her injuries.

The parties have requested a jury trial in the suit.

What happened?

Hafner was leaving Carrabba’s on Oct. 18, 2016 after she attended a wine tasting and pairing dinner put on by the restaurant, the lawsuit said. Carrabba’s still holds these types of dinners.

Hafner got a glass bottle of wine to take home from the event, according to the lawsuit, and “because of the poor lighting in the parking area she was unable to see an unmarked speed bump over which she fell injuring her face, mouth, knee and hand.”

The wine bottle she was carrying shattered when she fell, causing cuts on her face, mouth and hand, according to the suit.

Hafner was transported to Hilton Head Hospital by ambulance after the fall, the lawsuit said. She received stitches and other medical treatment in the hospital.

Her fall may result in knee surgery and she needed “extensive treatment” from the dentist, the suit said.

Hafner filed against Carrabba’s for damages of $31,000, stating that the restaurant had the duty to provide “smooth and clean pathways” around its parking lot, as well as a duty to properly mark trip hazards.

However, attorneys Lee Weatherly and Johnny Stewart filed an eight-page answer to Hafner’s claims. The response said that she does not have sufficient facts to constitute a case and it should be dismissed.

The attorneys’ response stated 10 other reasons why the restaurant is not responsible for Hafner’s injuries, including that “some or all” of Hafner’s injuries may have been caused by her own negligence.

The attorneys argue there is no connection between her incident and any negligence by Carrabba’s, and the speed bump in the parking lot would have been “open and obvious” to her.

Hafner and her lawyer, John Bowen, have not responded to the restaurant’s answer.

Weatherly and Stewart have not returned calls for comment on behalf of Carrabba’s.

This story was originally published December 28, 2018 at 11:47 AM.