Belongings stolen or damaged at a restaurant in Peru: is the restaurant liable?

A restaurant answers like a hotel, insofar as the rules fit

Most people think liability for customers’ belongings is a hotel matter. The Civil Code says otherwise. Article 1727 extends the lodging rules to other businesses:

“Las disposiciones de los Artículos 1713º a 1725º comprenden a los hospitales, clínicas y casas de salud o de reposo, establecimientos comerciales o de espectáculos públicos, balnearios, restaurantes, clubes, naves, aeronaves, coches-cama y similares, en lo que les sean aplicables.”

(Articles 1713 to 1725 cover hospitals, clinics, commercial or entertainment venues, beach resorts, restaurants, clubs, ships, aircraft, sleeping cars and similar, insofar as they apply.)

The last phrase matters: “en lo que les sean aplicables”, insofar as they apply. A restaurant does not give you a room, so not all of those rules fit. But the ones about keeping your belongings safe do make sense in a restaurant.

What the restaurant takes into custody

The clearest case is the coat check, or any time the staff take your things to keep them. Article 1718 says:

“El hospedante responde como depositario por el dinero, joyas, documentos y otros bienes recibidos en custodia del huésped y debe poner en su cuidado la diligencia ordinaria exigida por la naturaleza de la obligación y que corresponda a las circunstancias de las personas, del tiempo y del lugar.”

(The business answers as a depositary for money, jewelry, documents and other property received in custody, and must look after it with ordinary care.)

Answering “as a depositary” means the deposit rules apply: whoever takes an item to keep must return it (article 1814) and must look after it, under liability, with ordinary care (article 1819).

Three more rules complete the picture:

• Staff count. Article 1722 extends the business’s liability to the acts and omissions of its staff. If a waiter did it, the restaurant answers.
• They cannot refuse without a reason. Article 1721 says the business cannot refuse to take your belongings into custody without fair reasons, such as their value being excessive for the size of the business or their taking up too much space.
• Your own fault counts against you. Article 1724 frees the business if it proves the loss or damage was due solely to your fault, that of your companions, or the nature of the item itself.

What you keep with you

Here the law is less clear. Article 1719 says the lodging business also answers “de los objetos de uso corriente introducidos por el huésped, siempre que éste cumpla las prescripciones del aviso que estará fijado en lugar visible de las habitaciones” (for everyday items the guest brings in, provided the guest follows the notice posted in the rooms), and that the authority sets a cap on that liability.

That article was written for hotel rooms. We found no rule or Indecopi decision spelling out how it applies to a bag on your chair or a phone on the table. So if something you did not hand over is stolen, your case is more open to argument. Complain anyway, but know the outcome is not certain.

You must report it right away

This is the mistake that costs the most. Article 1723 says:

“El huésped está obligado a comunicar al hospedante la sustracción, pérdida o deterioro de los bienes introducidos en el establecimiento tan pronto tenga conocimiento de ello. De no hacerlo, quedará excluida la responsabilidad del hospedante, salvo cuando tales hechos se produzcan por dolo o culpa inexcusable de éste último.”

(You must tell the business about the theft, loss or damage as soon as you know of it. If you do not, its liability is excluded, unless it acted with intent or inexcusable fault.)

If you notice the loss at the restaurant, tell the manager then and there and get it in writing. If you notice it later, report it as soon as you realize.

The “we are not responsible” sign

Many restaurants have one. Article 50, literal a), of Ley 29571 declares of “ineficacia absoluta” (no effect at all) any clauses that “excluyan o limiten la responsabilidad del proveedor o sus dependientes por dolo o culpa” — that exclude or limit the business’s or its staff’s liability for intent or negligence. The article speaks of clauses, not signs, but a notice claiming to free the business from all liability does the same job. Our reading is that it does not erase the liability the Civil Code places on the business.

What the sign also does not change: your duty to report in time, and the rule that the business is not liable if the fault was yours.

If it happened in the parking lot

If your car, or something inside it, was stolen, a specific parking law applies, and it also covers parking that a restaurant offers. We explain it in theft or damage in private parking lots. Your other rights as a customer are in restaurants, bars and cafés.

What this page does not cover

We did not review Indecopi decisions or court rulings on thefts at restaurants, or any liability caps the authority may have set under article 1719. We also do not cover how the amount you are owed is calculated.