Couple Flew To Dominican Republic To Celebrate Fifteen Years Since Their Engagement

A couple who flew to the Dominican Republic for a dream engagement anniversary getaway are taking legal action against tour operator TUI UK Limited t/a First Choice, after their holiday turned into a nightmare due to one of the couple suffering from salmonella.

Steven Vale, 53 from Wirral, Merseyside, had booked the 10-day trip for him and his fiancée, to the five-star Luxury Bahia Principe Ambar Blue Don Pablo Collection, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, for June this year.

The couple travelled to the luxury resort, which houses various restaurants and bars and a spa, on 5th June 2017. A week into their trip, Steven began to suffer from diarrhoea, stomach cramps and vomiting.

After flying back to the UK on 15th June 2017, Steven’s symptoms continued. Following his return home Steven visited his GP and following tests it was confirmed that Steven had contracted salmonella.

Steven has since instructed expert international personal injury lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate what caused him to fall ill.

Nichola Blackburn, the international personal injury specialist at Irwin Mitchell representing Steven, said:

Expert Opinion

“We are very concerned by Steven’s experience and are looking into what caused him to fall ill.

“Gastric illness can have a significant impact on a person’s health and it is important that hotels and resorts ensure they maintain high levels of food and personal hygiene.

“We are determined to help Steven obtain answers regarding what caused him to fall ill.

As part of our investigation we would be keen to hear from anyone else who was affected or witnessed the problems at the Luxury Bahia Principe Ambar Blue Don Pablo Collection.” Nichola Blackburn - Paralegal

Steven has recalled to his legal team a number of concerns he held about hygiene standards at the resort. These included supposedly hot foods sometimes being served lukewarm and on occasions undercooked chicken being served.

He also recalled witnessing on occasions food handlers serving food whilst not wearing protective gloves. In addition, he noticed that food was sometimes not covered which meant that flies were able to land on it, and he noticed that on several occasions cats were walking freely in the restaurants.

The couple, who had travelled to the hotel last year and had experienced no problems, also told the team at Irwin Mitchell that they had seen a number of dead moths and cockroaches in and around the communal areas of the resort.

Steven, a store manager in retail said: “We enjoyed our stay at the resort in 2016 and we were really excited to return for another holiday. Unfortunately the two holidays ended up being very different.

“The conditions at the resort definitely appeared to have negatively changed. The restaurants were definitely different than when we first stayed at the resorts. It just didn’t seem like as much care and importance was given to maintaining the food safety and hygiene standards as on the previous occasion we had stayed there.

“It was a very disappointing end to what was meant to be a celebratory holiday to mark fifteen years since our engagement. I hope now that we can at least get some answers for how and why I contracted salmonella.”