In general, if you have an accident abroad, you would usually only be able to claim compensation by making a claim in that country under their laws. This can be very difficult and expensive – especially if the legal representatives in that country do not work on a no win, no fee basis. There are often language barriers, the law may be completely different, and you may have difficulty dealing with a legal representative who could be thousands of miles away.
However, if your accident or illness was whilst you were on holiday booked as a package, you might be covered by the Package Travel, Package Holiday, and Package Tour Regulations 1992. These Regulations mean that if you suffer an injury or illness that is someone else’s fault whilst you are on a holiday covered by the Regulations, you may be able to claim in the UK.
It’s all too common for people to suffer accidents or illnesses when they’re on holiday and should be enjoying themselves. This could be a slip or trip at a hotel, food poisoning at the onsite cafe, accidents during holiday activities such as water sports, or coach and car accidents.
To claim, the injury or illness must have happened whilst on a ‘package holiday.’ To be covered by the Regulations the company that sold you your holiday must have arranged at least two of either the transport, the accommodation, or ‘other tourist services.’ So, for example, if you paid for flights and the hotel as part of the same deal, that would be a package holiday that can be covered by the Regulations.
If you only bought flights or paid for the hotel, then you would only be covered by the Regulations if you also bought ‘other tourist services’ from the same company. These include activities that are a major part of the holiday, such as an excursion, or car hire that was paid for at the same time as either the transport or hotel.
If you had an accident on holiday and you are not sure whether you are covered by the Package Holiday Regulations, you can call our claims helpline and we will be happy to provide you with more information.