Cyprus has become the sixth country where British tourists making bogus holiday illness claims could face criminal charges.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office added the island to Greece, Bulgaria, Turkey, Spain and Portugal as being destinations where holidaymakers are increasingly being encouraged to make false illness claims.
The addition of Cyprus followed Abta stepping up its Stop Sickness Scams campaign by encouraging travel companies and consumers to lobby their MPs over the issue.
Supporters include destination representatives and the UK’s major operators including Thomas Cook, Tui, Monarch and Jet2holidays.
Travel Weekly is also calling for industry support for our Fight Fake Claims campaign to rid the industry of the recent rise in gastric illness claims that constitutes a mass fraud on the travel industry driven by unscrupulous claims management companies.
In revised travel advice for Cyprus issued yesterday, the FCO said: “There have been reports of an increase in holidaymakers being encouraged to submit a claim for personal injury if they have experienced gastric illness during their stay.
“You should only consider pursuing a complaint or claim if you have genuinely suffered from injury or illness. If you make a false or fraudulent claim, you may face legal proceedings in the UK or Cyprus.”
