We can help you claim
compensation following an accident
illness or injury - nationwide
Call: 0800 10 757 95
Hot air balloons make for a wonderful and serene sight. Big and bright against the blue sky of a summer evening, they are perhaps the most innocuous-seeming of all forms of air transport. However, they are not without risk and, if not properly operated, can even become the subject of holiday accident claims.
Wherever you choose to take your hot air balloon ride, it is likely that the operators should be certified. In Britain pilots should have an Air Operators Certificate, while most will also be members of the British Association of Balloon Operators. Furthermore, it will also be incumbent on any commercial operator to be registered with the Office of Fair Trading.
Likewise, operators in all countries must ensure that they perform rigorous safety checks before embarking on a flight. These will include a thorough assessment of meteorological conditions such as wind speed and visibility, as well as a full passenger safety briefing.
Hot air balloons are "aerostats", effectively this means that they depend entirely on the whims of the air mass in which they float. The only way a pilot can steer a new course is to alter altitude in the hope of finding a different wind current.
This means that accidents do occur, most frequently collisions with trees or buildings. Occasionally, particularly at large-scale ballooning events where there is a high density of traffic, two balloons will collide. However the most serious concern for any pilot remains the risk of colliding with power lines, which at voltages of up to 750,000 can cause fatal personal injury even when travelling down normally good insulating materials.
It is not unheard of for British holidaymakers injured in ballooning accidents abroad to make holiday accident claims. In 2009 two British women suffered spinal injuries when in a hot air balloon crash in Egypt, while in the same year a British man was killed and nine other UK holidaymakers injured in a balloon crash in Turkey.
Cost free holiday accident compensation claims
Wherever it was in Europe, Africa, Asia, the Americas, Australia or here in the UK, if you have suffered injury while on holiday and believe it may be attributable to the negligence of a tour operator, motorist or other third party, it may be possible to claim no win, no fee compensation.
Our advisors can quickly help you determine whether it might be in your interests to pursue a claim for civil redress.
You will never be obliged or pressured to follow through on this initial consultation, but should you wish to do so you will be appointed a leading personal injury solicitor from one of our panel firms.
All our holiday accident claim solicitors represent this type of litigation on a completely cost free basis. This means that win or lose our clients are protected from all possible costs, fees and disbursements.
To find out more about how we might be able to help you with your holiday accident claim, echat, complete a callback form or call one of our team on 0800 10 757 95.
