Thomas Cook boss: Only 1% of holiday sickness claims by Brits are genuine
ONLY one in 100 holiday sickness claims made by British tourists against allinclusive hotels is genuine, according to the boss of tour giant Thomas Cook.
Peter Fankhauser accused the vast majority of people alleging that their hotel made them ill of lying.
He told The Mail on Sunday: ‘Only around one, maybe two, per cent of the claims we receive are not false or exaggerated. I haven’t seen a challenge to our industry like this during my 28 years working in travel.
‘Of course, there are people from time to time who do fall genuinely ill and we do everything we can to help them. It is very difficult for us to accuse our customers of lying, but there are a minority making up claims.’
The Mail on Sunday has highlighted the surge in ‘holiday bug’ claims, with some tour firms reporting a 500 per cent increase in the past year. In May, we told how tourists Martin and Lindsey Brown had been secretly filmed enjoying their holiday in Turkey after hotel bosses were apparently tipped off that they planned to file a claim.
Now the Government is taking action over the growing scandal. A claims firm that urged clients to lie has become the first to be stripped of its licence.
Allsure Ltd, in Preston, encouraged tourists to fabricate or embellish symptoms of gastric illness to get compensation.
Kevin Rousell, head of the Claims Management Regulator, said: ‘Seeking to encourage false claims will not be tolerated.’
And Theresa May has told The Mail on Sunday she plans to cap the legal costs that can be paid to claims firms.
The problem is costing the Spanish hotel industry alone £50 million a year. Experts warn that it will force up the cost of package holidays.