What was supposed to be a dreamy holiday away in Fuerteventura for a British grandmother took a turn after she fell headfirst on a hotel pathway.
The incident happened on the very first night of her stay at two-star Hotel Puerto Caleta, which she had booked from package holiday company On The Beach.
The 52-year-old woman, from Lancashire, who does not wish to be named, suffered significant injuries from the fall which she says happened along a ‘poorly lit and badly surfaced’ pathway.
She sustained multiple soft tissue injuries as well as severe facial bruising and long-term shoulder issues.
The woman’s legal representatives Hudgell Solicitors were able to successfully win £23,000 for the Brit from On The Beach.
They argued the hotel failed to maintain the pathway and to ensure it was adequately lit and due to package travel regulations On The Beach had to legally take responsibility for the fall.
‘It was our first holiday since Covid, and we were really excited and had planned to do loads of wonderful things on the island,’ the woman revealed.
‘But after what happened, the holiday was completely ruined from day one.’
The British grandmother, who does not wish to be named, had booked a stay at Hotel Puerto Caleta in Fuerteventura through On The Beach
On the first night of her holiday, the woman fell headfirst along a pathway and suffered multiple injuries
The fall meant the holidaymaker couldn’t swim or ‘eat properly’.
She added: ‘I felt so self-conscious as the whole side of my face was completely black.
‘I’m not a clumsy person – I rarely have any accidents – so this came as a real shock.’
After the fall, the woman claims she was continually mistreated by hotel staff who seemed ‘disinterested’.
She feels ‘it was clear they were trying to pull the wool over our eyes’.
‘At first, they didn’t provide us with an accident form and when they did give us one it was written in Spanish,’ she shared.
‘After we finally reported the incident, we had a closer look at the block pavement, and it was horrendous – I surely can’t have been the only one to have fallen in the dark down that pathway.’
She claims four lights along the pathway were not switched on during the night she fell, but were on the following evening, which she thinks suggests ‘someone had forgotten’ to turn them on.
She sustained multiple soft tissue injuries as well as severe facial bruising and long-term shoulder issues
The fall meant the holidaymaker couldn’t swim or ‘eat properly’. She added: ‘I felt so self-conscious as the whole side of my face was completely black
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‘The hotel was so confrontational and made me feel very uncomfortable,’ the Brit added.
The holidaymaker returned to Fuerteventura recently and paid a visit to the hotel.
‘Unbelievably, they still hadn’t fixed the pathway,’ she added.
When she returned home, the woman was still in ‘a lot of pain’ and she explained how she ‘had an unusual lump on my face that made me look deformed’.
‘It’s not in my nature to look for blame, but what happened was not my fault,’ she continued.
‘Everyone says it is never about the money, making a claim, but it really wasn’t – it was about the principle.’
Accident abroad specialist Anne Thomson, a senior litigation executive for Hudgells, said: ‘Our client understands that accidents abroad can happen, especially on the first day of a holiday when people might be tired from a long journey and still acclimatising to new surroundings.
‘But, in this case, it was quite clear she was badly let down by a hotel that showed a complete disregard for the health and safety of their guests.
The woman’s legal representatives Hudgell Solicitors were able to successfully win £23,000 for the Brit from On The Beach. Pictured: Fuerteventura
‘The pathway that led to their apartment was in an awful mess, while the family were plunged into darkness due to a clear-and-obvious human error.
‘The fact it is still in such bad condition clearly demonstrates that lessons have not been learned, which is most disappointing.
‘We urge all holidaymakers to exercise caution along poorly lit and badly surfaced walkways and to seek immediate legal action from an accident abroad law firm if they find themselves in a similar situation.’
The woman has urged for other holidaymakers in her position to ‘make detailed accounts of exactly what happened’ and ‘to gather as much evidence as you can before taking legal action’.
A spokesperson for On The Beach said: ‘The hotel accepted responsibility for the incident and its insurer settled the claim. We supported the process to ensure the customer received compensation.’
The Daily Mail has also contacted Hotel Puerto Caleta for comment.
