When booking a holiday, the last thing you expect is to fall ill during your stay and when it does occur it can lead to serious health problems, not to mention ruin your entire holiday. If you booked your holiday with a tour operator, you are their responsibility and therefore, if you contract an illness due to poor hygiene or lack of care, you have a right to claim compensation.
Many people will book holidays, without being aware of the terms and conditions, meaning that if they are unfortunate enough to fall ill whilst abroad, they are often unsure of how to deal with it. Package holidays with flights and accommodation booked together provide you with the protection of the Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992. These laws outline that the tour operator is fully responsible for your safety and wellbeing for the duration of your holiday.
This means that yourself and anyone else who with you who became ill on the package holiday could be entitled to £1000’s in compensation.
The process of claiming compensation for holiday illnesses can be complex, time consuming and often confusing if not professionally handled. At Sarah Waddington Solicitors, our team of dedicated legal experts are here to help guide you through it and work hard to ensure that you receive the compensation you deserve.
What Types Of Holiday Illnesses Can I Claim For?
Many holiday-makers fail to claim after becoming ill on holiday, often assuming that the illness was a random occurrence, rather than due to the incompetence of the organisation paid to protect them. Illness on holiday can cause a large amount of upset, pain and discomfort not to mention the loss of precious time you should be enjoying the trip that you paid your hard earned money for!
Things such as vomiting, diarrhoea, nausea, high temperatures, fatigue and stomach cramps are some of the symptoms associated with common holiday illnesses such as;
Food poisoning or related illnesses such as gastroenteritis, e-coli, Shigella, Giardiasis, Campylobacter, Cyclospora Cryptosporidium and salmonella
Norovirus
Hand, foot and mouth disease
Bacterial infections
Legionnaires’ disease
Typhoid
Contracting these diseases is entirely avoidable if the appropriate and correct health and safety measures regarding things such as food preparation, storage, and cleanliness have been followed. The tour operators, hotels, restaurants and service providers have a duty of care to you as a customer to ensure that regulations and necessary standards are met to keep you safe, and if you become unwell as a result of their failing then you deserve and are entitled to financial compensation.
How Does The Claim Process Work?
The first step for any holiday illness compensation claims is to ascertain whether you have a strong legal case and the right to financial recompense.
We will never take on a client if we do not feel they have a valid case. Before we begin the claim process, we provide a free, no obligation consultation in order to get a detailed account of your situation that will allow us to ascertain if the case is valid or not. At Sarah Waddington Solicitors, we are totally honest with all of our clients, so if your case isn’t lawful, we make sure to let you know early on, to save you wasting your time and prevent you from getting your hopes up.
If your case is viable then we will work with you to gather as much information and evidence as possible to validify your claim such as;
Statements from other guests who experienced similar symptoms.
Photographs of poor hygiene, food storage or maintenance.
Information about the resort, hotel or restaurant’s health and safety policies.
Food diaries if relevant, including details of what was ingested before and after contamination.
Statements from family members.
Medical reports from any hospital or doctors visits.
Report forms and details of any complaints.
Details of financial loss such as money spent on holiday activities you could not attend, or time taken off work.
Once we have gathered as much evidence as possible, our expert holiday illness lawyers will make a claim against the resort on your behalf which if successful will be paid out of the resort or tour operator’s insurance.
Holiday Illness Claims Solicitors You Can Trust
When it comes to making a claim for being ill on holiday, professional representation from experts in the industry is essential and can make all the difference between a successful claim and a failed one. Sarah Waddington Solicitors have been in the industry for more than 20 years and have a wealth of knowledge and experience dealing with, handling and successfully pursuing holiday illness claims.
During the progression of your case, we can guarantee that there are no hidden costs and our no win, no fee basis means that you will only pay a fee if you receive compensation for your claim. As a team, we will manage the entire process on your behalf ensuring that everything is taken care of and that you can have complete peace of mind in knowing that your case is in capable hands.
Unlike claims agencies, we are qualified to issue direct legal proceedings where necessary to fight for your compensation. We are an SRA (Solicitors Regulation Authority) registered solicitors and use the SRA’s guidance when pursuing Holiday Sickness Claims.
How Much Can You Claim For Being Ill On Holiday?
Anybody who has fallen ill in the last 3 years whilst on a package holiday is protected by the Package Travel Regulations 1992 which states that tour operators are liable for any failings in hygiene or food standards at hotel which they promote.
The amount of holiday illness compensation you could be entitled to claim for will depend on various factors such as the severity of your individual case and any financial losses you incurred. Although every claim is different, there are guidelines in place for personal injury cases relating to sickness and roughly how much compensation could be received.
For example, those with mild food poisoning involving symptoms such as stomach pains, cramps and diarrhoea that continue for several days, the average case can settle for between £700 and £3,000.
For holiday makers who are unfortunate enough to suffer with more severe symptoms that lead to toxicosis, causing acute pain, fever, diarrhoea and vomiting that require hospital admission, the compensation could be much higher.
In some cases, food poisoning can cause serious ongoing conditions such as IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) and can have a significant impact on a person’s ability to work and live a normal, pain free life. For claims such as these, you could receive a compensation amount of up to £40,000.
In addition to the claim for personal injury as a result of sickness, you can also claim for any days of your holiday that were lost or ruined due to you being unwell, the cost of medical treatment abroad, lost earnings and any other reasonable financial costs you incurred as a result of your illness.
What Are My Next Steps?
If you think that you could be eligible to receive compensation for your holiday illness, you’ve come to the right place. With over 20 years’ experience in law and litigation and a wide range of knowledge about holiday illness claims, we will provide you with professional representation, working on a no-win no-fee basis.
At Sarah Waddington Solicitors, we offer a free, friendly initial assessment where one of our skilled advisors will work closely with you to find out more information about your situation. After the initial consultation, we will facilitate a plan of action which is agreeable to yourself and reflects your legal position. To begin the process today, fill out our enquiry form including details about the ill on holiday claim you wish to make and your contact information so that we can contact you when necessary to discuss your case.
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