Newlywed suing luxury resort after veil was damaged.

COURT: Perth man lodges claim against luxury Caribbean holiday resort

A newlywed is suing luxury Caribbean holiday resort Sandals after staff burned a hole in his bride’s veil on the day of their wedding. Alison Stewart, 49, was left devastated and in tears when she discovered the veil had been ruined just 15 minutes before she married Perth businessman Steven Stewart, 50. Mr Stewart has lodged an £8,200 claim at Perth Sheriff Court against Unique Vacations (UK) Ltd, which operates the Royal Bahamian Hotel in the Bahamas. The company has admitted damaging the veil after the couple left their wedding outfits to be pressed in the laundry at the hotel. Mr Stewart said: “We had got off the plane with our clothes crushed up in our suitcases so we put them into the hotel laundry to get freshened up and pressed. “It was about 15 minutes before the ceremony when Alison phoned me from the room in floods of tears. “My first thought was that she had taken cold feet and decided not to go through with it or something like that. “Then she told me that she had just put the veil on and realised it had been completely ruined. They had ironed it and it had a big hole and scorch marks. “It was far too late to do anything

She told me that she had just put the veil on and realised it had been completely ruined. They had ironed it and it had a big hole and scorch marks. STEVEN STEWART

about it or even think about a replacement. We just had to go ahead with what we had. It put a downer on things.” The hotel admitted responsibility for the damage and resort manager Jackson Weech agreed to pay for a future holiday for the couple as compensation for their distress. However, when Mr and Mrs Stewart decided to book a week-long break at the group’s resort in St Lucia they ran into a dispute with the holiday company. The holiday was due to cost £8,200 but Unique Vacations claims it had only agreed to offer a credit note for the £3,523 they originally paid in the Bahamas. Mr Stewart was in court this week for a preliminary debate over whether the case should be heard in Scotland, where the action has been raised, or back in the Caribbean. Sheriff Gillian Wade rejected the holiday company’s initial argument to have the case moved to the Bahamas and fixed a future date for a hearing in Perth. The case states Mr Stewart and Mr Weech shook hands on a deal to allow the couple to stay free for seven nights at any resort. In return, Mrs Stewart agreed to remove a Facebook post berating the hotel for the incident. The holiday company, in its legal answers, said: “It is admitted that the damage caused to the wedding veil constituted a breach of the booking contract.” The company’s lawyers claim the credit offered was for the price they had paid to stay in the Bahamas and features a number of restrictions. The company has accused the couple of suing for an “excessive sum” .