Couple’s Mexican Holiday To Celebrate Husband’s 40th Birthday ‘Ruined’ By Illness

A couple who fell ill during a holiday to Mexico to celebrate a special birthday have instructed expert travel illness lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate the cause of their illness following their stay at the Sandos Playacar Beach resort in Cancun, Mexico.

Nichola Driver, 36, and her husband Wayne, from Bradford travelled to the four-star resort with tour operator Thomas Cook to celebrate Wayne’s 40th birthday in October 2015.

But just days into the holiday Nichola began to suffer with diarrhoea and stomach cramps.

Nichola self-medicated to alleviate the symptoms but through their two-week break she experienced sporadic episodes of diarrhoea.   

The symptoms they suffered during their break at the Sandos PlayaCar resort meant they were unable to fully enjoy the facilities and Wayne’s birthday celebrations were ‘ruined’. As a result of the symptoms Nichola suffered she has lost over half a stone in weight.

The couple has now instructed expert international personal injury lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate the cause of their illness following their stay at the resort to help them get the answers as to what caused them to fall so ill which ruined their holiday.

Nichola told her legal team that the four-star resort was not what she was expecting when she booked the hotel. She said the room had a number of problems, including wall sockets hanging from the walls, dirty bedding and that the entertainment space at the resort was being used for construction work.

She also said the hygiene conditions were not what she expected. The couple regularly saw food left uncovered for long periods of time, she was served lukewarm food on a number occasions and flies and insects were flying around the food

Jennifer Downing, an expert travel illness lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, representing Nichola and her husband, said:

Expert Opinion

“We have now heard first-hand accounts from Nichola about the conditions at the hotel and her concerns about what may have caused them to fall ill.

“This was intended to be a special holiday to celebrate Wayne’s 40th birthday but they have returned from Mexico with only bad memories and continue to suffer health issues following their return to the UK.

“Nichola has lost half a stone in weight due to the long-term impact the illness had on her and understandably wants to know why she became so ill on what was supposed to be a luxury holiday in Cancun.” Jennifer Downing - Solicitor

Nichola said: “The holiday was supposed to be a celebration for Wayne turning 40 but it turned into an absolute nightmare. We were expecting a luxury break but instead we were left extremely disappointed by the quality of the hotel.

“Falling ill with such terrible symptoms just added insult to injury and we have been left extremely angry and frustrated at the whole experience and we hope that by taking legal action our legal team will be able to get the answers as to what caused us to fall so ill.

“The last thing we expected when we booked the holiday was to come home feeling worse than before we left and that we’d suffer for months as a result.