The Hidden Statistics: How Often Do Guests Suffer Carbon Monoxide Poisoning in Lodging Facilities?

When we stay in a hotel or motel, we trust that we will have a comfortable and safe stay. We expect the bed to be clean, the shower to work, and maybe even to have a view of the skyline. 

What we rarely think about is the presence of a silent, invisible danger: Carbon Monoxide (CO). 

Because CO is colorless, odorless, and non-irritating, it can accumulate undetected and cause serious harm—or even death.  When we think of poisoning, we usually imagine chemicals or illicit drugs; very few travelers imagine that the air in their hotel room might betray them.

Yet the risk is real, and it’s under-appreciated. In the lodging industry (hotels, motels, resorts), guests and employees have suffered CO poisoning from improper ventilation, faulty fuel-burning equipment, vehicle exhaust, or other sources. 

For law firms like Morgan & Morgan, this hidden danger presents a basis for premises liability claims. For guests, it presents an urgent safety matter. 

If you or a loved one has suffered harm due to carbon monoxide poisoning in hotels or elsewhere, contact Morgan & Morgan today for a free, no-obligation case evaluation to learn more about your legal options.

A Silent Killer: What the Data Tells Us About Carbon Monoxide Poisoning in Hotels

While national statistics for CO poisoning in general are better known, the data specifically for lodging facilities is more limited but still significant.

According to a peer-reviewed study covering the period from January 1, 2005, to December 31, 2018, researchers identified 115 incidents of unintentional CO poisoning in U.S. hotels, motels, or resorts. Those incidents involved 905 individuals poisoned, including 22 fatalities.

Broader research on non-fire-related CO poisoning in the U.S. finds that annually there are about 422 deaths, around 5,593 emergency department visits, and roughly 825 hospitalizations for CO poisoning (all settings, not only lodging) from 2005–2018.

Data compiled by organizations tracking lodging industry incidents indicate that, between 1999 and 2018, there were 3,405 CO incidents reported at lodging-industry sites (based on the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) codes) in the U.S.

According to the Jenkins Foundation (which maintains a database of hotel/motel CO incidents), between 1989 and 2018, there were at least 183 documented cases in U.S. lodging leading to at least 49 deaths and “more than 1,600” poisoning injuries.

A recent news summary also states, “the past 20 years have seen more than a thousand injuries from carbon monoxide leaks in U.S. hotels, with 32 people, including seven children, dying.”

These data points show that although the absolute number of incidents in lodging is modest compared to all CO exposure settings, the risk in lodging is real, meaningful, and preventable. 

For guests who suffer injury or death in these circumstances, legal recourse is available when negligence or failure to protect is involved.

Sources of CO in Hotels and Motels

To understand the risk, it helps to know where CO comes from in hotels and lodging facilities. CO is produced by the incomplete combustion of carbon‐containing fuels, such as natural gas, propane, oil, gasoline, diesel, and wood,  when oxygen supply or ventilation is insufficient. The following are the prime culprits in lodging settings:

• Heating systems and furnaces: A malfunctioning hotel boiler or furnace, especially older ones, can produce CO if an exhaust flue is blocked, the combustion air is insufficient, or the burner is improperly maintained.
• Swimming pool/spa heaters and boilers: Hotels with indoor pools often use large fuel-burning boilers to heat the water. If venting is improper or the unit is located adjacent to guest rooms (or air intakes), CO can migrate to occupied spaces. In earlier hotel CO research (1989–2004), 16 of 68 identified incidents were tied to pool/spa boilers.
• Water heaters, dryers, ovens, or other appliances in basements or mechanical rooms: Fuel‐burning water heaters, dryers, or kitchen equipment may serve the guest rooms or facility; if the ventilation is poor or the equipment is faulty, CO can accumulate.
• Vehicle engines or garages adjoining the hotel: Some lodging properties have underground garages or are adjacent to vehicle exhaust zones. If exhaust enters the building envelope or HVAC intake, that can create CO infiltration risk.
• Portable generators or fuel-burning equipment for power backup: During outages or for special events, fuel‐powered generators may be used. If placed too close to the building or not properly vented, they may become CO hazards.
• Poor ventilation/air circulation: Regardless of source, if ventilation is inadequate (air exchange is low, flues are blocked, fresh‐air supply is compromised) CO can build up. The “silent killer” aspect of CO is amplified in indoor lodging settings where guests may sleep and not notice symptoms until too late.

Understanding these sources is key to identifying risk exposures and pursuing legal claims when property owners or managers fail to mitigate them.

Why Detection Remains Inadequate: Few Hotels Have Co Alarms Despite Known Risk

Despite the recognized danger of CO, detection in the lodging industry remains inconsistent and inadequate. Several factors contribute to this shortfall:

• Lack of federal requirement: There is no U.S. federal law that mandates the installation of CO detectors/alarm systems in every guest room of lodging facilities. The requirements are largely governed by state and local statutes, codes, and regulations, which can vary.
• Sparse state‐level statutes: Many states still do not require CO alarms in hotels/motels, or the requirements apply only to newer construction, or only to fuel-burning appliance rooms.
• Hotel industry assumptions/risk-tolerance: Some hotels may assume that because no incident has occurred, the risk is low; or they may rely on general HVAC maintenance and assume smoke alarms suffice (they do not detect CO).
• Cost/retrofit concerns: Installing CO alarms in existing guest rooms (especially older properties) involves cost, wiring, interoperability with fire systems, maintenance, and testing. Some owners may delay or avoid it.
• Hidden nature of CO and difficulty of detection: Because CO is odorless and symptoms mimic flu or intoxication, such as headache, nausea, dizziness, guests and staff may not immediately identify the cause. If no alarm sounds, the problem may go unreported, and no corrective action will be taken.
• Limited data/tracking leads to under‐awareness: Because there is no unified national surveillance specific to lodging CO exposures, many incidents go untracked or unreported; this hampers pressure for regulation and awareness.

Guests might be staying in rooms without functional CO alarms, and property owners may not have robust CO monitoring programs. For a law firm representing injured clients, this gap is significant. It creates the condition for premises liability claims when prevention fails.

Why the Issue Matters for Guests 

From the guest’s perspective, CO exposure in a lodging facility is not just a matter of discomfort; it can be life-altering or fatal. The consequences may include:

• Immediate symptoms: headache, dizziness, nausea, shortness of breath, confusion, loss of consciousness.
• Delayed or long-term injury: One lodging study reported that among survivors, 117 were known to have permanent neurological injury.
• Fatality: Even one death is too many, and multiple reported cases underscore that lodging CO hazards are not theoretical.
• Emotional trauma, medical bills, lost wages, pain & suffering: For the injured, the impact is profound.
   

From the law-firm perspective, these incidents present premises-liability issues: property owners and managers owe guests a duty of care, a safe place to stay, with hazards reasonably addressed. Key legal considerations include:

• Did the hotel or motel know or should it have known about the risk of CO exposure?
• Did the facility have a fuel-burning appliance, ventilation concern, or other potential source of CO?
• Did the property install and maintain CO detection equipment consistent with applicable codes and industry practice?
• Was the hazard discovered or obvious, and if so, was an appropriate warning or remediation provided?
• Did the property respond appropriately once a problem was reported?
   

Given that safety standards are widely available and that the hazards are known, a failure to implement them can support a claim of negligence. 

For Morgan & Morgan, this means clients injured or killed by CO exposure in lodging may have strong grounds for compensation for medical costs, lost income, future impairment, and other expenses and damages. 

If you or a loved one has been affected by CO exposure in a hotel, motel, or resort, whether through injury, persistent neurological issues, or death, know this: you are not alone. 

The data show dozens of incidents every year, and legal recourse is available. At Morgan & Morgan, our team can help you assess whether premises liability claims are appropriate, whether the facility failed to protect you, and how to pursue compensation for your injuries or losses.

CO is silent, but you don’t have to be. Hiring one of our lawyers is easy, and you can get started in minutes with a free case evaluation.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many hotel CO incidents are reported each year?

Comprehensive annual figures specific to hotels and motels are not publicly reported for every year. However, from 2005 to 2018, 115 incidents were identified in hotels, motels, or resorts (905 individuals poisoned, 22 fatalities).

Also, between 1999 and 2018, lodging-industry data (NFIRS) identified approximately 3,405 CO incidents in U.S. hotels and motels.

 

Are motels more at risk than big hotels?

The data doesn’t cleanly break down risk by “motel vs. big hotel” in every case. Studies show that incidents span all classes of lodging, from budget motels to upscale resorts.

Many risk factors, such as the age of the building, proximity of fuel‐burning equipment, and ventilation quality,  matter more than chain size alone.

What states have stricter laws about CO detectors in lodging facilities?

Only 14 U.S. states currently require CO detectors in hotels/motels under statute.

The specific states and exact requirements vary (some apply only to new construction, some only when fuel-burning appliances are present). 

Has the number of incidents gone down in recent years?

General surveillance of non-fire-related CO poisoning shows a significant decrease in crude rates for hospitalizations and mortality from 2005–2018. However, for lodging-specific incidents, the data is incomplete, and it is unclear whether a consistent downward trend exists. 

Under-reporting and variable detection make trend analysis challenging.

 

Why don’t more hotels have CO alarms?

The lack of CO alarms can be for several reasons, such as a lack of mandatory federal requirement, state laws that are inconsistent, costs of retrofitting older buildings, assumptions by managers that risk is low, and limited data and awareness about lodging-specific CO exposures.

Regardless, it can all be summed up to negligence by hotel management, cutting costs and corners when they aren’t required to take simple precautions that could keep guests out of harm’s way.

Does this risk happen only in winter?

No. While many CO poisoning incidents in residential settings peak in winter due to increased use of furnaces and space heaters, the lodging setting may present risk year-round, such as indoor pools, boilers, dryers, mechanical rooms, and generator placement. All can be sources regardless of season. Travelers should remain alert anytime they stay overnight.

Are certain building types or older hotels more at risk?

Yes, older hotels may be at higher risk because of outdated or poorly maintained fuel-burning equipment, older ventilation systems, legacy plumbing and mechanical rooms, or a lack of retrofit CO detection. 

That said, new hotels are not immune; the hazard depends on equipment configuration, maintenance, and detection, not age alone.

Can the hotel industry be held to higher safety standards now?

Yes. Legal liability already holds property owners/managers to a standard of reasonable care. As the industry becomes more aware of CO risks, higher safety standards are emerging (CO detection, maintenance protocols, training). 

The absence of national minimum standards may mean variation, but from a liability standpoint, the presence of a known risk and failure to mitigate it strengthens potential claims. For plaintiffs, showing that a hotel failed to install CO alarms, maintain exhaust systems, or respond to incident complaints can support a case.

Where can I find data or reports on hotel/motel CO incidents?

A few useful resources include the Jenkins Foundation’s “Database of U.S. Hotel and Motel CO Incidents” and national surveillance reports from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as other public health agencies for broader CO poisoning data.

If you need information about what to do after suspected exposure to carbon monoxide, especially if you are experiencing adverse health effects, contact Morgan & Morgan today for a free case evaluation to learn more about your legal options.