Compensation for a Holiday Accident in Italy

Is my daughter eligible for compensation for a holiday accident in Italy? She tripped on an uneven tile by the side of the hotel pool and dislocated her shoulder when she fell.

Question:

Is my daughter eligible for compensation for a holiday accident in Italy? She tripped on an uneven tile by the side of the hotel pool and dislocated her shoulder when she fell.

Answer:

Provided that the regular formalities of making a claim for personal injury compensation are completed, your daughter should be eligible for compensation for a holiday accident in Italy – the regular formalities being that your daughter received professional medical treatment for her injuries, her accident was reported to the tour representative and the hotel, and the hotel admitted liability for the uneven tile which caused her to trip.

If there is any dispute over liability, photographs should be taken of the hazard, contact details of witnesses who saw the accident should be collected and a report made in the hotel´s “Accident Report Book”. If your daughter has already returned home, it may still be possible to collect the information she needs to support her claim for a holiday accident in Italy and she should speak to a specialised holiday claims solicitor as soon as possible.

Please note: If your daughter is under the age of eighteen, it will be necessary for you to claim compensation for a holiday accident in Italy on her behalf, whether you were with her on holiday or not.

How much compensation for an injury on an Italian holiday your daughter may be entitled to receive is going to be influenced by how her Italian holiday was booked. If a UK-registered tour operator was used to book a package holiday (i.e. flights and accommodation), your daughter will be able to claim for a holiday accident in Italy in the UK under the Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992. In this case, you can expect a full settlement to account for your daughter´s pain and suffering at the time of her accident, any deterioration in her quality of life which is attributable to her dislocated shoulder and any expenses she (or you) incurred which were due to her injury.

However, if the accommodation was booked independently of the flights – either directly with the hotel or via an Internet price comparison web site – your daughter will not be covered by the Package Tour Regulations and will have to make a civil claim in Italy against the hotel´s public liability insurers. This can be a far more costly and time-consuming process and, in some cases, it may not even be worth her while to pursue compensation for a holiday accident in Italy.

It is recommended that you discuss the circumstances of your daughter´s injury, whether the hotel has admitted liability and how your holiday accommodation arrangements with a specialised holiday claims solicitor at the first practical opportunity to receive help and advice which is relevant to your daughter´s specific situation.