Holiday Abroad Accidents

Many are saying that the idea of personal injury claims has already been abused. That can be partly true, considering thousands of people file for one annually. But a lot of the ideas surrounding it are actually misconceptions. For example, when it comes to accident claims on holiday abroad:

Solicitors can’t all help you anytime

The great thing about making a holiday accident claim in the UK is you’re covered by the Holiday Package Regulations Act. In other words, there’s more protection for consumers here. To a certain extent, it’s also applicable to accidents that happen abroad. But often, you have to work closely with the local solicitors or attorneys (where you met an accident). This is because long-standing laws can affect the compensation or even the merit of the claim.

There are two general causes to file a claim against the travel agency

One, the accident or the illness should occur in or caused by the hotel. For instance, you may have almost drowned because of a lack of lifeguards in the swimming pool area. You can also file a claim if you meet an accident while on a tour that’s included in the package. This simply means that if you injured yourself while paragliding or being involved in extreme sports, you may not be able to consider the travel agency as responsible since there’s a huge chance such activities are not included in the holiday package and you may have obtained them from independent operators.

It’s a completely different scenario if you’re an independent traveller

You are deemed an independent traveller when you didn’t go through a travel agency and that you booked all the holiday-related needs such as flights and accommodation through different companies. Because this doesn’t fall under the holiday package act, you have less protection, but you can still be covered by the general consumer regulations. Your claim is usually against the company that didn’t keep up to its promise. Definitely, though, it’s more challenging to deal with than a holiday package claim since you are creating different contracts each time you take advantage of the operators’ services.

In holiday packages, there are criteria to be met

Not all holiday packages can fall under the 1992 act. The law has outlined some of the most essential requirements for a package to be considered a holiday package. One, the coverage should be at least 24 hours or include an overnight accommodation. It should also be prearranged, which means the itinerary is fixed and is already prepared by the company. The price, moreover, should cover all the inclusions. A holiday package must also have transport, which is a plane fare, a bus, or any main transport to get to the destination, as well as other services such as tours.

By reading above, you can instantly discover that filing for a claim while on a holiday abroad may not be easy. Thus, it’s highly advisable that you work closely with an experienced solicitor with expertise in holiday accident claims.