Holiday firm is to blame over tourist’s rape ordeal 11yrs ago

Woman attacked by hotel worker finally wins compensation at Supreme Court

A TOURIST who was raped by a hotel worker at a glamorous resort in Sri Lanka 11 years ago has won a legal battle for compensation from the tour operator.

The woman, now in her 40s, was on holiday with her husband in July 2010 at the Club Bentota Hotel on Paradise Island for a 15-night all inclusive holiday.

They booked the holiday through package tour operator Kuoni.

In the early hours of July 17 the woman, from Glasgow, was walking through the grounds of the resort. An electrician who was wearing a maintenance worker uniform offered to show her a shortcut to reception – but instead lured her into an engineering room where he raped her.

The woman suffered from posttraumatic stress disorder after the assault.

The victim’s legal team argued Kuoni was liable as the man was guiding her within the resort as part of the service provided under the package holiday contract. The Supreme Court – the highest court in the UK – yesterday ruled Kuoni is liable to pay her compensation.

It ruled the obligations of tour operators are not just services such as accommodation, meals and transport but also a duty to ensure the safety of customers.

Despite the victory, the woman told how she felt she had been ‘put on trial’ as Kuoni’s defence team trawled her social media and counselling notes to build a case against her. She added that she believes victims of sexual assault are routinely subjected to character assassinations, and her mental health was repeatedly questioned.

The woman said: ‘Today’s decision is a huge relief for me and my family, and we are hugely grateful to our legal team.

‘Unfortunately, rather than take note and review its approach to my experience, Kuoni decided to double down and effectively put me on trial in an open court.

‘This was all while I was actively suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.’

During legal proceedings, the High Court and the Court of Appeal ruled in Kuoni’s favour. However, in July 2019 the Supreme Court handed down a preliminary judgment and the case was referred back to the Supreme Court for final judgment.

A spokesman for Kuoni said: ‘This was a traumatic incident for the claimant and we remain extremely sympathetic to the impact it’s had.

‘After many years, we are pleased that the Supreme Court has provided clarity in a very complex case. We will now take time to consider the full verdict.’