£82,500 recovered following accident in France

Our client went on a 2 week package holiday to France in April 2004. The package comprised a coach tour of France and accommodation at various hotels along an agreed route.

On the 8th day of the tour the coach party arrived in Cannes and towards the early evening drew up outside the hotel in which they were due to spend that night. The coach came to a halt alongside the hotel. Our client remembers the tour director saying “here we are!” before he exited the coach by the front exit. Our client, together with other passengers, understood from this that they had come to a final halt for the day and so stood up to retrieve their belongings from overhead racks.

Unfortunately, the coach then suddenly and without warning moved forward and as a result our client lost her balance and fell down the exit steps towards the centre of the coach.

The accident resulted in extensive bruising, an amputation of one toe and a fracture to the right thigh bone. Our client, then aged 79, lost mobility and consequently much of her independence.

A claim was brought by Irwin Mitchell Solicitors against Cosmos Coach Tours Limited, the tour operator who supplied the holiday, and AXA France IARD S.A., the French insurers of the coach.

The facts of the accident were disputed and both Defendants denied liability. Just prior to trial, our client accepted a global settlement sum of £82,500 to include both compensation for her injuries and her legal costs.