The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that Kuoni may be liable to pay damages in a long-running case about a woman who was raped while on holiday in Sri Lanka.
‘Mrs X’, whose identity has been protected, was assaulted by an electrician who was working as a contractor at the Club Bentota Hotel in 2010 while she was on a Kuoni holiday.
She subsequently brought a claim for damages against Kuoni under the Package Travel Regulations (PTRs).
In 2018, a High Court ruling found Kuoni was not liable to pay damages to the customer as the operator could not be responsible for circumstances that could not have been anticipated or avoided.
In 2019, the Court of Appeal also found Kuoni not liable in a judgment which appeared to reduce the liability for personal injury to clients of travel companies under the PTRs.
Mrs X took her case to the Supreme Court in May 2019, and it was referred to the ECJ in July 2019 for clarifications on the law.
On Thursday, the ECJ in Luxembourg ruled that “the organiser cannot be exempted from its liability arising from such non-performance or improper performance”.
It also said the employee “cannot be regarded as a supplier of services”.
The case now returns to the UK Supreme Court, which will determine the woman’s appeal and will rule on whether Kuoni is liable to her for the assault carried out by the hotel employee.
Mrs X’s legal team at law firm Irwin Mitchell argued that the package tour operator is liable for the attack as the man was on duty at the time and was guiding her within the resort as part of the package.
Her solicitor James Riley said: “The terrible ordeal that our client went through has had a profound effect on not only her life but also her family. To this day she’s still greatly impacted by what happened.
“While nothing can ever make up for the hurt and suffering that our client has gone through, we welcome today’s judgment by the CJEU.
“This ruling is a major milestone in our client’s pursuit of justice. It also clarifies an important area of law which could help others in similar situations to our client. We will continue to support our client and her family as we await a final ruling from the Supreme Court.”
Kuoni is yet to comment.
An Abta spokesman said: “We are considering the detail of the judgement to understand what the implications might be for tour operators, particularly for bookings made under the later 2018 Package Travel Regulations.”
More: Supreme Court rules on Kuoni case [July 19]
UK Supreme Court reviews key ruling [April 19]