Lawrence v Thomas Cook

The claimant, who was aged three at the date of the onset of illness and seven at the approval hearing, suffered an acute gastrointestinal illness, including symptoms of fever, diarrhoea, abdominal pain and vomiting.

She went on a family holiday to Egypt in September 2012. The claimant’s symptoms started on 22 September 2012. She experienced symptoms of diarrhoea, abdominal pain and extreme tiredness, followed by sickness. Two days later her mother was so concerned about her welfare that she was taken to hospital. She was put on a drip and kept in hospital overnight, and subsequently discharged with medication to help with the vomiting and diarrhoea.

The claimant was ill for the rest of the holiday. In total, her symptoms persisted from 22 September until 2 October 2012. There was no recurrence of her symptoms and none were expected in the future.

The medical expert advised that the claimant developed infective gastroenteritis while on holiday in Egypt. It was likely that the gastroenteritis resulted from ingesting water from the hotel swimming pool or food or drink which had become contaminated due to poor standards of hygiene at the hotel.

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