£6,000 Recovered For Holiday Maker Injured By Hotel Staff Horseplay

Irwin Mitchell have successfully settled the claim of Mr Cooper for injuries sustained during his holiday at the Bahia Principle Hotel in San Juan in the Dominican Republic.

Mr Cooper was participating in a game of water polo in the hotel pool along with other holidaymakers and members of the hotel Animation Team.  During the game of water polo, a member of the Animation Team ‘leapfrogged’ onto Mr Cooper’s shoulders and dived into the water, dragging Mr Cooper under.  As a result Mr Cooper suffered a significant whiplash injury to his neck. This injury ruined the rest of Mr Cooper’s holiday and took two years to recover, affecting his day to day life and requiring him to take time off work for frequent medical appointments.

As Mr Cooper had booked his holiday with a Tour Operator, Irwin Mitchell were able to bring the claim in England under the Package Travel Regulations.  The claim was submitted to Mr Cooper’s Tour Operator, First Choice, who alleged that Mr Cooper was injured during a legal manoeuvre in the water polo match, and consequently denied liability.  Irwin Mitchell argued that the ‘leapfrogging’ incident was not part of the game and in any event such a manoeuvre would be deemed as foul play under the rules of water polo.  Despite this, First Choice continued to deny liability.

Irwin Mitchell prepared to issue court proceedings against First Choice to secure Mr Cooper the compensation that he deserved.  Following this, First Choice offered £5,000 to settle the claim amicably.  Negotiations followed and we were able to secure a higher offer of £6,000, which Mr Cooper happily accepted.

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