Family Seek Answers After Problems At Pegasos Royal Hotel

The parents of a boy who was hospitalised after being diagnosed with salmonella on his return from a stay at a Turkish holiday resort earlier this year have called on specialist lawyers to help them gain justice regarding their holiday ‘nightmare’.

Northampton-based Hannah Johnson, 27, has revealed how she, her partner Gareth Barker, 30, and their six-year-old son Ollie-Dean Barker all fell ill with gastric symptoms just a day into their holiday at the Pegasos Royal Hotel in Antalya in September.

The problems proved so severe that the family chose to cut their week-long holiday at the resort short by two days and on their return to the UK Ollie was admitted to Northampton General Hospital and diagnosed with salmonella which is a serious bacterial infection, especially for children, which can cause long-term complications or even death.

Following the problems, Hannah and her family instructed specialist lawyers in Irwin Mitchell’s International Personal Injury team to investigate the issues they faced and help them gain answers as to whether they could have been avoided.

The legal experts have vast experience of providing support to holidaymakers affected by illnesses at resorts across the globe and they currently represent individuals affected by salmonella problems linked to the Pegasos Royal Hotel in 2016 and over 60 people who holidayed at the resort in 2017.

Jatinder Paul, the specialist travel lawyer at Irwin Mitchell who is representing Hannah and her family, said: 

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“This is a hugely worrying case which highlights the serious impact that Salmonella food poisoning can have, with children being particularly vulnerable to such problems.

“Since our instruction we have commenced our own investigations into what our clients faced and are determined to help them get the answers and justice they deserve regarding their experiences.

“It is a concern that this is the third consecutive year we have been contacted regarding salmonella linked to this resort and evidently this is something that requires further examination.

“We are advising a growing group of holidaymakers caught up in these problems. As part of our investigations we would like to hear from other guests who may have information about conditions at the hotel this summer." Jatinder Paul - Partner

Hannah, Gareth and Ollie’s holiday at the Pegasos Royal Hotel, which was booked with TUI, began on Sept 8th and they all started to fell unwell on their second full day.

Hannah outlined: “We were all suffering in a very bad way but it was particularly hard to see just how unwell Ollie was. It got so bad that we had to get emergency treatment from the  hotel doctor who suggested Ollie should be sedated which was obviously very worrying for us.

“The illness turned the holiday into what felt like a nightmare and we just wanted to get home as soon as possible. While we were initially told that we couldn’t leave early, we eventually got back two days earlier than planned. We would have been relieved except Ollie was still so ill.”

After they returned to the UK, Ollie was admitted to hospital for four days and tests confirmed that he had salmonella. Days later, Gareth also tested positive for Salmonella and they are all now undergoing antibiotic treatment.

Hannah added: “Ollie has still not fully recovered and it has been awful seeing him so ill. While we saw a few things at the resort which bothered us – like undercooked food and cats in the restaurant – we never for one moment thought were at risk of such a serious illness.

“The holiday was completely written off which was very hard to take, especially as it was meant to be a special break for us to all enjoy. We just feel we deserve answers regarding what happened and whether it could be avoided. This should not happen again.”

Read more about Irwin Mitchell's expertise in holiday illness cases.