Holiday mishaps: Steps you can take to stay safe on your holidays.
Things you should consider before traveling abroad.
Every year, millions of us travel abroad for our holidays, with many not giving a thought to things that could go wrong and assuming that things will go without a problem. It is best to plan for the unforeseen as statistics show that in the last three years there have been an estimated 4.4 million British holidaymakers who have suffered an injury or sickness whilst traveling abroad. Many could have been avoided or the consequences lessened had better planning and preventative steps been taken in advance.
Injury can happen to anyone and often happens due to the negligent actions of others. If this is the case, you could be entitled to compensation.
With the holiday season upon us, please consider our helpful pre-holiday checklist to ensure you plan for the unexpected, avoid unnecessary risks and know what to do should anything happen.
Have you applied for or renewed your EHIC (European Health Insurance Card)?
Accidents can happen at any moment, including serious injuries. You should ensure you only travel with an EHIC card which provides access to state-funded treatment when visiting another European Economic Area (EEA) country.
The card allows you to access free medical treatment but should not be solely relied upon as an alternative to private travel insurance. For example, the EHIC will not cover emergency transportation back to the UK for urgent medical care. It’s important to think about purchasing private travel insurance to protect you and your family if you don’t already have it included on certain bank accounts, credit cards etc. It’s worth checking these to see if you already have it but do carefully check the cover provided is adequate.
Suffering sickness or injury whilst abroad can cause a huge amount of stress and worry for you and your family so it’s best to be prepared.
What do I need to do to make a holiday claim?
In the event of an injury or sickness on holiday, it is important that the incident is reported immediately to the place where it occurred and to your travel rep, a travel company and travel insurer as soon as possible. Make sure it is recorded in the accident logbook, and you obtain and keep any additional incident information that may be needed for the claim, such as names and addresses of witnesses and the time and location of your accident. You should also take photographs of where the accident took place, as this can be vital evidence used to support a claim.
You must be able to prove another party was at fault. For example, if you contracted a sickness bug from eating uncooked food at your hotel restaurant, then you would be entitled to claim compensation. However, if you have fallen sick after eating food purchased elsewhere, but consumed it on hotel premises, you would not be able to claim against your tour operator but may be able to claim from where you bought it.
Thankfully most of us don’t but if you suffer the misfortune of an injury or sickness due to food poisoning on holiday, you should act quickly as you must ensure that either you claim is settled or court proceedings are started before the third anniversary of your accident or illness.
Nigel Askew Solicitor is an expert in all personal injury matters who will be happy to talk you through the process of making a claim in plain English and will be happy to answer any questions or queries you may have. Telephone now on 01507 609027 or or get in touch with me online for a free, no-obligation consultation about your case. I offer no-win, no-fee advice without any hidden charges.