No Win, No FeeAnyone who pays to go on holiday expects to have a nice time and get the holiday they’ve paid for. While that happens in most cases, some holidays are ruined because someone in their party suffers an injury or is made ill. While some might write this off as ‘one of those things’, it’s important to realise that you could be entitled to start a holiday accident claim for any suffering caused by someone else’s negligence.
If you’ve been injured whilst on a package holiday, on a cruise, on a plane or while staying in the UK, our team will begin by reviewing the circumstances with you. During your free initial consultation, they’ll provide legal advice and explain your chances of being compensated. If there’s a reasonable chance of winning a holiday accident claim, you could be referred to one of our personal injury solicitors. Should they decide to represent you, they’ll do so on a No Win, No Fee basis so you’ll not have to pay for their work upfront.
Would you like to talk to us about claiming compensation for an accident on holiday right away? If so, please call us on 0800 652 1345. Alternatively, for further information on the options available to you, please carry on reading.
Can I claim compensation for an accident on holiday?
When solicitors are asked to look at a potential compensation claim for an accident on holiday, they’ll usually assess whether:
- You are claiming against a party that owed you a duty of care; and
- Because of a negligent act, an accident on holiday occurred; and
- You suffered an injury during the accident.
A duty of care can be established in several ways. For example, the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements 2018 regulations mean that a package holiday provider must make sure all aspects of your holiday are reasonably safe.
Similarly, when holidaying in the UK, a hotel operator may have a duty of care to keep you as safe as possible because of the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. If you call to discuss your holiday accident claim with us, we’ll check whether a duty of care existed when reviewing your case.
What are package holidays?
If you’re injured on a package holiday sold by a UK holiday company, your claim could be made against them rather than the hotel (for example) where the accident happened. This means UK laws will apply even if your accident on holiday happened abroad.
A package holiday is:
- A holiday that lasted more than 24 hours or included overnight accommodation. Additionally, you must have purchased at least two of the elements listed below from the same retailer:
The deal can be classed as a package holiday if the holiday company:
- Charged a single price for the whole holiday package.
- Allowed you to arrange several services before you agree to purchase them.
- Advertise the holiday in terms of a package or similar term.
- Sold you one part of the holiday then passed you to another to purchase the rest of your holiday within 24 hours.
If you book a holiday in separate parts from several retailers, this will not constitute a package holiday. In this instance, if you’re injured on holiday, your claim would need to be against the individual service provider meaning UK laws will not apply if the accident happened abroad.
What types of holiday accidents could I claim for?
Let’s take a look now at some examples of holiday accidents that might mean you’re entitled to compensation:
- Where you injure yourself when a faulty or damaged chair collapses when you sit in on it.
- If you slip and are injured because the hotel foyer is excessively wet due to bad weather and there are no warning signs.
- If you suffer food poisoning in a restaurant, hotel or bar because of poor hygiene standards.
- Where you fell from a height because the safety railing on a balcony was loose or missing.
- If you are electrocuted by a faulty appliance such as a kettle in your room.
- If you were burned because of a faulty thermostat on the bathroom shower in your room.
- Where your hire car’s brakes fail due to poor maintenance and you have a car crash and hurt yourself as a result.
- If you’re injured on an excursion or sporting activity because of a lack of training, supervision or safety equipment.
If you believe you’ve suffered an accident on holiday and would like to claim compensation, why not call to see if we could help?
How much compensation for an accident on holiday am I entitled to?
Any compensation paid for an accident on holiday must be fully justified with evidence and is designed to try and get you back to the same position you were in before the accident (or as close as possible). As such, when your solicitor calculates the amount of holiday accident compensation you should claim, they’ll factor in:
- How much pain and suffering you’ve endured.
- What impact the injuries have had on your holiday (loss of enjoyment).
- Whether your injuries have affected your family, your social life or your hobbies.
- Any income you’ve lost because of your injuries.
- If your earnings will be affected in the future because of long-term injuries.
- Any care costs or medical expenses.
- Any additional travel expenses that have been caused by your injuries.
- If you need to pay for mobility aids or modify your home to help you cope with your injuries.
As you can see, there is a lot to consider when making holiday accident claims. It’s important to get this part of the claims process right because you can only make a single claim. Using an experienced solicitor could make things easier as they’ll have dealt with similar claims in the past. To see if one of our personal injury solicitors could help you, call 0800 652 1345 now.
How to prove an accident on holiday claim
If you are hurt or made ill while on holiday, you must supply proof to demonstrate what injuries or illness you’ve suffered and who is to blame. To do this you might use the following:
- Incident reports. It is important to report any accident and injury on holiday where possible. A copy of your accident report would make it difficult for the business or holiday company to deny that the accident took place.
- Medical proof. You should always seek professional medical advice if you’re injured on holiday. It’s worth checking with your holiday insurance provider where you should go if you’re abroad. Later on, you could ask for a copy of the medical notes to help show what injuries you were treated for.
- Witness details. If possible, you should collect the contact details of anyone who saw you get injured on holiday. They might be contacted later on if your solicitor needs to try and prove liability for the accident.
- Camera footage. If your accident was recorded on CCTV cameras try to secure a copy of the footage. In the UK and Europe, data protection laws allow you to request recordings of yourself in a Subject Access Request (SAR). In other parts of the world, the process may differ.
- Photographic proof. It’s always good to take pictures at the scene of an accident you’ve been injured in. Ideally, you should take pictures from various angles before anything is removed from the scene.
Importantly, you’ll need to inform your holiday rep or provider if you’re injured whilst on a package holiday. This is to allow them to do all they can to try and resolve the matter while you’re still on holiday.
If you do decide to make a holiday accident claim, a medical assessment will usually be required to show how you’ve suffered. This will be performed by a local (where possible) independent medical expert. They will assess your injuries, read any medical notes and discuss the implications of your injuries with you. Then they’ll prepare a report for your solicitor that will list your injuries and explain your prognosis.
How long do I have to claim holiday accident compensation?
It’s important to note that various time limits apply if you’re injured on holiday. If you’d like to check how long you have to claim, please get in touch. For now, though, please refer to the following list:
- Package holiday claims through a UK tour operator – 3 years.
- UK holiday clams – 3 years.
- Aeroplane injury claims – 2 years if booked independently or 3 years for package holiday claims.
- Cruise ship claims – 2 years from the date of disembarkation.
- Injuries on holidays abroad that were booked independently – varies based on local legislation.
Our advice would be to begin your holiday injury claim as soon as possible. By doing so, your solicitor will have the time they need to collect evidence and arrange medical appointments before your claim is filed. If possible, they may also be able to request for the holiday company to pay for you to receive private medical treatment to aid your recovery.
No Win, No Fee personal injury claims
You might think that paying for a solicitor to help with a personal injury claim for a holiday accident is too risky. After all, solicitors’ fees and expenses can run into thousands of pounds, especially if the case takes a while to be finalised. However, if your claim is accepted by one of our solicitors, you’ll benefit from a No Win, No Fee service.
That means you won’t pay for any work in advance and you won’t pay them if your claim is lost. However, if your accident on holiday claim is successful, they’ll deduct up to 25% of your compensation as a success fee to cover their work.
If you would like to check whether you could be represented on a No Win, No Fee basis, please call today.
Start a holiday accident claim today
We hope we’ve explained when you could be compensated if you’re injured on holiday through no fault of your own. If you have now decided to pursue damages for your suffering and would like to work with us, you can get in touch via live chat or by calling 0800 652 1345.
During your free consultation, we’ll review the grounds for your claim and help you to decide whether to proceed with a claim. If your case appears to be suitable, we’ll appoint one of our personal injury lawyers to it. Should they agree to represent you, they’ll use their legal skills to try and secure as much compensation as possible for you.
You’ve reached the end of our guide on holiday accident claims, so please connect with us via live chat or request a claims consultation here if you have any further questions.
