Holiday Accident Compensation

With an estimated 60 million people in the United Kingdom taking trips abroad every year, it is unsurprising that some of these holiday makers are involved in various accidents. Holiday tour operators, hotel staff and all employees of any company used whilst a person is travelling abroad have a duty of care to ensure that each person is provided with a safe service. If this standard of care is not upheld, consequently causing an accident, a person may be eligible to claim for compensation. The most common types of holiday accidents include:

• Slipping on a wet floor in a hotel
• Tripping on a loose pavement slab
• Road traffic accident while driving a rented car/minibus/motorcycle, or as a pedestrian.
• An accident whilst on an arranged day excursion
• Food poisoning from the hotel restaurant
• Sports accident due to dangerous and unsafe equipment, for example whilst on a skiing/water sports holiday.

Making a claim for compensation as a result of an injury sustained in a foreign country can often prove difficult. This is because the compensations claims are usually subject to the laws of the particular country where the incident occurred, potentially affecting a persons right to compensation and the value of the claim. However, there are certain bodies and regulations set in place to help victims claim compensations for their accidents abroad. These include ‘The 1992 Package Travel, Package Holiday and Package Tour Regulation’ which aids those who suffered an injury whilst on a foreign package holiday to claim compensation for their accident in the UK. The ‘4th EU Motor Directive 2003’ and the ‘Motor Insurers Bureau’ take care of any road accidents abroad, making it easier to identify foreign cars involved in a particular accident and subsequently for the injured party to claim compensation. 

Conversely, if a holiday is booked through a travel agent in the UK as part of a package holiday rather then booked independently, claiming compensation for an accident is much easier. The claim can be made against the travel company in the UK, rather than having to bring a claim against a particular individual, for example a hotel owner in a foreign country. However, regardless of the differences between making a claim against a UK company or a foreign company/individual, the same procedures should be taken by to ensure that the claim has the highest chance of success. Photographic evidence, witness statements and a personal account of the accident should be noted as to provide as much information as possible to the solicitor or court when making the claim.