Q: Do I have any legal recourse since I had two rings, totaling 18,000, stolen while I was in surgery in a NYS hospital?
I had a 3rd surgery, knowing the procedures however it’s during Covid and my husband was not with me to help. I forgot to leave my rings at home. I was given bags for my stuff and put my rings in those because that’s all I was offered. I was not told there was a safe at all! After surgery, the nurses looked through my bags to make sure nothing was left behind and my rings weren’t there. I didn’t notice I didn’t have my rings because I was under sedation. Two days later I realized I didn’t have my rings on because I always wore them and didn’t think about them not being there and I was recovering from surgery. Hospital states they won’t reimburse me because the admitting nurse, even though she admits I had the rings at that time, initialed a paper stating she told me that the hospital was not responsible for my possessions. I never signed anything agreeing to that and we NEVER had that conversation. I also never saw the nurse again later that day. She could have stolen them and signed!!
A: You can sue. Also, you might want to call a media outlet. These stories are big in COVID times. That might give you leverage.
A:
It could be difficult to speculate how the matter might ultimately pan out in court. There are the issues you raise, outlined in your description, and the hospital will also raise a number of compelling issues. If it goes to trial, it could depend on the personal outlooks of jurors - it isn't that clear cut and different people could see it differently. Good luck
Tim Akpinar
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