International Travel Law Experts Instructed To Investigate Cause Of Illness Abroad

A young couple who travelled to a five-star Turkish resort for a romantic getaway only to fall ill with gastric symptoms forcing them to fly home early have instructed travel law experts Irwin Mitchell.

Naomi Harding, from Leigh-On-Sea, in Essex jetted off to the Diamond Hill Resort in Turkey in June 2013 with her boyfriend Kieran for a sun–filled, relaxing holiday but instead they both suffered from gastric illness with reported symptoms including diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach cramps.

Both Naomi and Kieran sought medical treatment from their local general practitioner on return to the UK and Naomi was diagnosed with suffering from gastroenteritis.

Kieran, 22, suffers from diabetes and on top of the gastric symptoms he was suffering from Ketoacidosis, which is a lack of insulin in the body causing him to feel extremely weak and lethargic, and was at risk of slipping into a diabetic coma had matters worsened.

The couple instructed specialist travel lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate the cause of their illness.

Naomi and Kieran told lawyers they were concerned about the food preparation at the hotel, reporting that some of the food served was left uncovered, that some of the hot food was served cold or just lukewarm and that on occasion fresh food was just added on top of old food. They also report observing flies landing on some of the food.

Jennifer Downing, an International Personal Injury law expert at Irwin Mitchell who specialises in helping people suffering illness both abroad and in the UK, said: “Aside from making holidays extremely unpleasant, gastroenteritis can have a long-term impact on a sufferer’s health and it can be serious when someone with diabetes suffers from gastric symptoms.

“Naomi and Kieran’s holiday was ruined and cut short by their illness and we are now investigating the cause of the illness and hope The Freedom Travel Group will work with us as we seek the answers to our client’s concerns.

Naomi was signed off from work for five weeks by her doctor after she was diagnosed with gastroenteritis and is still suffering from ongoing symptoms.

Naomi, 21, who works as a secretary, said: “I have been undergoing investigation with my general practitioner over the past year and to this day I am still struggling with stomach issues and ongoing symptoms.

“Our illnesses ruined the holiday and forced us to leave the resort to return home early. As Kieran is diabetic, it was incredibly scary for me to see his condition decline, especially when we were travelling home and were both very unwell. He was so weak that he could not even carry his suitcase and when we got home we both went to our doctors.

“It’s not what you expect when you book to go on holiday. Instead of feeling relaxed and coming back fresh, we’ve come back feeling really ill and we want to know what caused it.”