We can help you claim
compensation following an accident
illness or injury - nationwide
Call: 0800 10 757 95
Every year thousands of British people go on holiday abroad to enjoy some sun, or snow, and take in the sights, but some people unfortunately have to seek help from a personal injury solicitor on their return in order to make a holiday claim.
Many activities undertaken on holiday could go wrong and end in injury, but an activity sometimes overlooked, is taking a dip in the resort's swimming pool.
Reports in 2007 told of holiday swimming pools found to contain up to 30 different bacteria potentially harmful to humans, and 2011 saw news stories about a family taken ill on holiday in Turkey after swimming in a pool contaminated with human waste – this resulted in a holiday claim of £300,000 against the well-known tour operator they had used.
A large amount of bugs are introduced into pools by tourists, through their sweat, urine, mucus, saliva, hair, dead skin and faecal matter. Sun cream, perfume and cosmetics can also cause illness when not cleaned from a swimming pool regularly by the resort's staff.
Other bacteria which have been found in resort pools are cryptosporidium, e.coli, giardia, pseudomonas aeruginosa and acanthamoeba. These are often responsible for causing severe stomach upsets, skin and ear infections, and inflammation of the surface of the eye – which can result in blindness if there are any small scratches on the eye's surface and the infection is left untreated.
Worryingly, the children's pool is often the worst affected by bacteria. Young and elderly people are most at risk of experiencing an illness through being exposed to these bugs, which grow best in warm water.
However, simply putting greater amounts of disinfectant in the water is not enough. Research into 80 pools in Majorca and Corfu in 2007 found that there were such high levels of disinfectant chlorine in some pools, that bathing costumes became bleached and the water caused irritation to eyes and skin.
As well as this, human waste and chlorine can react chemically with one another, producing nitrogen trichloride, which is an irritant and is known to cause asthma in children, especially in poorly ventilated indoor pools.
Generally, if the correct amount of chlorine in a swimming pool is used and it is working correctly, then there should be no chlorine smell present. If a tourist falls ill using a pool which has not been suitably cleaned by those responsible, then they could find help from a personal injury solicitor.
Legislation for swimming pool hygiene
Although the Federation Internationale de la Natation is the international governing body for all rules and safety regulations in water sports, the Health and Safety Executive states that "there are no specific health and safety regulations governing swimming pools.
"As far as public safety is concerned, Section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 requires employers to conduct their undertaking in such a way as to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that the public is not exposed to risks to health and safety".
Seeking a personal injury solicitor?
If you or a family member has fallen ill after swimming in a pool at a holiday resort, due to the negligence of staff in correctly filtering, cleaning or disinfecting the water, then you could make a holiday claim with our help.
To find out if you could receive 100% compensation through a personal injury solicitor, fill out our short online claim form, chat to one of our advisers on live help, or phone us direct with your inquiry on 0800 10 757 95.
