Holiday Accident Claims In The Algarve, Portugal – How To Claim Compensation? – How Much Can I Claim?

Holiday accident claims the Algarve

The Algarve is a very popular holiday destination for British tourists with its year-round sunshine and sandy beaches. Most people enjoy their stay and have no problems but a holiday in Algarve can be ruined if you are injured or become ill and it is because of somebody else’s mistake.

This guide will cover what to do in the event of an accident, how to make a claim after you return to the UK and the time limits that exist for all claims.

If you’d like to begin your personal injury claim today, then give Legal Expert a call on 0800 073 8804 now. If you’d like to no more then, carry on reading and we’ll guide you through the process.

Select A Section

• A guide to Algarve accident abroad compensation claims
• You or a family member were in an accident in the Algarve, what should you do?
• Algarve emergency services contact numbers
• Algarve healthcare for tourists and families
• Portuguese personal injury claim time limits
• Algarve package holiday accident compensation
• Algarve accident claims we can process
• Hotel accident abroad compensation claims
• Claim for sickness or food poisoning in Algarve
• Claim compensation after a fall on holiday
• Family activity accident and injury claims
• Algarve car and road traffic accidents
• Using accident abroad solicitors in the UK
• No win no fee travel accident compensation specialists
• How to get in touch
• Useful links

A guide to Algarve accident abroad compensation claims

The Algarve is the most southerly region of Portugal with a Spanish border to the east and beaches on the Atlantic Ocean along its southern and western coasts. It benefits from a very warm climate most of the year and as such has become a very popular destination with thousands of British tourists flocking there each year.

This guide is designed to help with holiday accident claims in the Algarve and covers lots of useful information including what to do in the event of an accident, where to go for treatment, how to prepare for a personal injury claim and the type of accident that might occur.

We’ll cover the types of holiday accident in the Algarve that can occur such as food poisoning, hotel accidents and illnesses, slips, trips and falls, family activity accidents and road traffic accidents. In each case we try to explain the causes, the injuries and what you can do to help with a subsequent claim for compensation.

We have included a useful links section at the very end of this guide which you can use for further information.

You or a family member were in an accident in the Algarve, what should you do?

When on holiday in the Algarve and you, or a member of your group, are involved in an accident there are some steps you should follow if you’re going to make a claim. Our advice would be to wait until you return to the UK and begin your claim with a UK based personal injury solicitor as it does simply the process.

Our guide on claiming for holiday accidents abroad covers this more fully but in general, if you do become injured in the Algarve then you should take these steps:

• Firstly, and most importantly, seek medical treatment where needed and use the emergency services if needed (more on this in the next section).
• Try to document what happened in your accident by taking photographs or video using your mobile phone. Get as much detail as you can and try to include the perceived cause of the accident such as a raised paving slab if you tripped over it.
• Ask any witnesses for their contact details if they saw your accident as they can be used as evidence to support your case, especially if the witnesses are independent.
• If you booked your holiday as part of a package holiday, then you should contact the tour operator’s rep as soon as possible (more details on package holiday claims).
• If you’re in a place with staff such as a shop, hotel or restaurant then report your accident to them and ask them to record it in their accident report. If possible, ask for a copy but if that’s not available then make a note of the member of staff’s name.

The main point to take away from this section is that you need to gather as much evidence as you can to support your claim as it’ll be harder to gather once you’ve returned to the UK.

Another point worth making is that you should write down exactly where the accident happened: the building name, shop, hotel or restaurant and the date and time as this sort of information can be easily forgotten once you’ve returned home.

Algarve emergency services contact numbers

As with the UK the emergency services can be contacted via a single number in the Algarve. We’ve listed important numbers below:

• 112: Emergency services (Ambulance, Fire Brigade and Police)
• 808 24 24 24: 24 hour medical advice line
• +351 21 392 40 00: British Embassy Lisbon

We’ve included fuller British Embassy details in the useful links section of this guide.

Algarve healthcare for tourists and families

The Algarve region of Portugal is very family friendly and so, if you or a family member become ill or injured, any of you can get medical treatment for free (or at a discounted rate) at any hospital or medical centre provided you have got a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) which takes about 7 days to arrive and can be applied for online (it’s free).

The EHIC covers all treatments that are required immediately or can’t wait until you return to the UK but is not a replacement for travel insurance. You should still consider travel insurance as EHIC won’t cover costs like aftercare and damage to personal property.

There are a number of public hospitals in Algarve and generally the quality of treatment is very good. If you do have travel insurance, you may want to speak with your provider as you might be entitled to private healthcare.

Portuguese personal injury claim time limits

It is the case, in most countries around the world, that you have a limited amount of time to make a personal injury claim and Portugal is no different.

Take a look at the table below which shows what types of claim you can make and the time limits associated with that type of claim:

Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a holiday compensation calculator that are sometimes advertised on the Internet but if you’d like to know how much compensation you could be awarded then one our personal injury specialists may be able to give you an indication following your initial consultation.

Algarve package holiday accident compensation

Package holidays are generally the most popular way of booking holidays to Algarve and offer more protection for British tourists involved in accidents and illnesses than other types of holidays because of special legislation created by the government in 1992. Because of that it is important that, if you are involved in an accident, you report the injury or illness to your package holiday rep as soon as possible.

Some of the most popular package holiday companies travelling to Algarve are:

• Jet2Holidays
• Thomas Cook
• TUI
• British Airways
• Kuoni
• Virgin Holidays
• Trailfinders

We can help with all claims for package holiday claims even if the operator isn’t listed. A package holiday is defined by the fact that you buy 2 or more major parts of your holiday from the same company such as flights and hotel or cruise and excursions.

Algarve accident claims we can process

The types of holiday accident claims in Algarve that we can help with include: Family activity accidents; Food poisoning; Hotel accidents; Slips, trips and falls and; Road traffic accidents.

If you’ve been involved in any type of injury in the Algarve or illness in the Algarve and want to make a claim for compensation, then we at Legal Expert can help. The next few sections highlight the types of accidents we help with and what you should do in the event you’re involved.

Hotel accident abroad compensation claims

In general, the hotels in the Algarve are very well run and have rigid health and safety procedures in place but accidents can still happen if staff don’t follow the procedures or training, that they’ve been given. The types of accidents and injuries that can occur in hotels include:

• Slips, trips and falls can happen when a hotel has been very bust and luggage, cleaning items or other items have been left littered around public areas. The hotel has a duty of care to ensure that it is safe, at all times, for guests and staff to get around the hotel. Another scenario could be where cleaning is taking place, but no warning signs are in place to warn guests of a slippery floor.
• Gym accidents can occur when guests are allowed to use the gym without any type of training or induction. Another possible cause for an injury in the hotel gym is when a machine is faulty and has not been repaired.
• Food poisoning is covered in the next section but all hotels in the Algarve have the same duty to stick by hygiene standards to ensure food is cooked correctly and to mitigate the risk of food poisoning.
• Illnesses following activities in the hotel swimming pool can because the pool hasn’t been cleaned properly or the maintenance schedule was not followed.

In all of these types of hotel accident you should seek medical advice from a doctor or the emergency services, report the accident to the hotel staff and ask any witnesses to provide you with their contact details so that Legal Expert can use their statement as part of the evidence in your claim.

Claim for sickness or food poisoning in Algarve

We have written a separate guide regarding restaurant claims but specifically to restaurant claims in Algarve there are number of things to do if a doctor diagnoses you with food poisoning.

Food poisoning can lead to conditions such as salmonella, e.coli and other bacterial infections which can, in the short term, ruin your holiday but in bad cases it can cause life threatening illness which could’ve been avoided had the food been stored, prepared, cooked or reheated properly.

The things you should consider doing if you’re ill and suspect food poisoning are:

• Visit a medical centre or hospital to receive immediate treatment. Don’t think the symptoms will pass without treatment because if you’ve got a serious case then symptoms will only get worse without treatment.
• Following treatment, you could ask other guests of the establishment if they were ill too and what food they’d eaten to see if there is a pattern. Ask for their contact details as well.
• Inform the staff of your illness and ask them to log it. Get the name of the member of staff you report it to as evidence that you did.
• Let your holiday rep know if you’re on a package holiday.
• Photograph the restaurant if you think it is obviously unhygienic.

If you have travel insurance, then you may be able to get treatment for your food poisoning at a private medical facility, so it would worth contacting your insurer once you’ve been diagnosed.

Claim compensation after a fall on holiday

Slips or falls can happen at just about any point in your holiday to the Algarve and when the fall is caused by somebody else’s mistake, incompetence or negligence then you could claim compensation for your pain, suffering and damage to any personal property.

There are some common reasons for slips and falls being somebody else’s fault, a few scenarios include:

• Wet or slippery floors where no warning signs are in use.
• Uneven roads, paths, kerbs or flooring.
• Poorly lit areas where a trip hazard exists which prevented you from seeing the hazard.
• Items left on the floor in busy walkways such as items of clothing in a clothes store that have been dropped and not returned to the racking.

All of these scenarios are avoidable and therefore it could be claimed that if somebody had reacted to them then the accident may not have occurred in the first place. It would be advisable to try to photograph the cause of the accident, report it and ask witnesses for their contact details.

Sometimes the fragility of the human body can be shown when a simple fall can lead to life changing injuries that you never fully recover from and require multiple surgeries to try and put things right. The common injuries from a slip, trip or fall include:

• Spinal injuries from strains to spinal cord compression. You should never move anybody (unless it is essential for their safety) if you suspect a back injury.
• Head injuries should always be checked by medical staff.
• Broken bones which can either be very simple to fix or some, more complex cases, which require multiple surgeries to put right.
• Soft tissue damage such as sprained ankles or wrists.

Family activity accident and injury claims

There are lots of family based activities in the Algarve that should make your holiday really enjoyable and memorable such as walking tours, water based activities and family sporting activities. Good advice would be to try and book through a reputable company (ask the advice of your tour rep as well) but even then, accidents can happen if the operator or its staff fail to comply with safety measures on the day of your accident.

All operators of activities should have risk assessed any dangers and put measures in place to prevent customers from becoming injured. In all cases they should:

• Check on the day of the activity that the weather conditions are suitable.
• Check with every customer (sometimes by way of a questionnaire) that they are fit and able to participate.
• Provide full training on how the activity will take place.
• Provide full safety equipment that is well maintained and free from damage.
• Supervise the activity from start to finish and ensure that all customers stick to the rules.

If you, or a member of your family, have been injured in an activity-based excursion and any of the above didn’t happen then you could justifiably make a claim for personal injury or loss of holiday enjoyment compensation.

Try to gather evidence such as videos or photographs of what went wrong, what caused it and who was to blame as well as asking other participants to provide witness statements. Some activities offer a recording of the event, so you may want to get a copy if you believe it will show your accident happening. Claims for compensation can be made against the operator or through your travel insurance provided you have the right level of cover.

Algarve car and road traffic accidents

The number of fatal road traffic accidents in Algarve is not recorded but in Portugal, in general, road safety is improving but there were still over 800 fatalities last year. Car crashes in the Algarve do happen and if you’re involved in one there are some things you can do to make claiming compensation easier when you return to UK such as:

• Ensure anyone who needs treatment receives it as soon as possible by calling the emergency services if required.
• Ask the other driver involved in the accident for their contact details including name, address, mobile number and the name and number for their insurer. Make a note of the number plate for their vehicle too in case they give false information.
• Contact the police if there is a serious injury or a criminal act has taken place like drink driving.
• Photograph the scene of the accident with as much detail as you can including where the cars ended up following the accident and try to capture the other vehicles licence plate.
• Obtain witness statements and contact details to help substantiate your claim that the accident was the other driver’s fault.
• If any car, including yours, has a dashcam then try to secure footage of what happened.

In all cases of a road traffic accident in Algarve it is possible to make compensation claim (if it wasn’t your fault) even if the driver can not be identified or has no insurance. You should contact your hire company to have the car towed and to be transported to your destination.

Using accident abroad solicitors in the UK

A lot of clients think that they have to use a Portuguese solicitor when making a claim for compensation in Algarve, but this simply isn’t the case. There is no legal requirement for a solicitor to be from Portugal or even have an office there and we find that using a UK based solicitor like Legal Expert makes things much easier for our clients.

Using Legal Expert means there’s no language barrier to contend with, no time difference and you don’t need to understand the intricacies of the Portuguese legal system as our experts already have the skills to help make your claim for you.

If you’re looking to make a claim for holiday injuries then why not use Legal Expert, based in the UK, to do it for you on a no win, no fee basis.

No win no fee travel accident compensation specialists

There are still solicitors who charge their clients by the hour even if they lose the case for compensation which we find a bit unfair. We don’t like the idea that a client could end up with a huge legal bill but receive no compensation and so we work on a no win no fee basis on all cases we take on.

The agreement, known as a conditional fee agreement (CFA), means that from the start you’re told what percentage of your compensation will be used to cover our costs and if we don’t win you any compensation you don’t pay any fees whatsoever: no hourly rate and no final fee which means using Legal Expert is fair and completely risk free.

Once you call us we’ll offer a free initial consultation where we’ll discuss your accident, the injuries and the reason it happened and when we agree to take your case on we’ll provide the CFA for you to review and then we can move forward and gather evidence to make your claim.

Day Trips in Algarve

Here are some of the most popular things to do in Algarve:

• Faro
• Villa Real de Santo Antonio
• Alcoutim
• Tavira
• Olhao
• Loule
• Vilamoura
• Albufeira
• Silves
• Portimao
• Serra de Monchique
• Lagos
• Sagres
• The West coast

We can help with claims for accidents that have occurred at any of these destinations (or others that aren’t listed) so please get in touch when you’re ready to claim.

How to get in touch

We hope you find this guide about holiday accident claims in Algarve useful and informative, and that if you agree that our no win, no fee service is the most risk free way to make a personal injury claim then you are ready to make contact with us today. If so, you can get in touch by:

• Telephone: Call us on 0800 073 8804
• Email: Send an email to the team using info@legalexpert.co.uk
• Live Chat: Our team of specialists can answer any questions via live chat 7 days a week
• Online form: Use this simple online claim form to begin your free consultation.

We’re ready to hear your story and start working on your case so that you get the maximum compensation you deserve for your injuries.

Useful links

British Embassy Portugal Lisbon
Rua de Sao Bernardo 33
1249-082 Lisbon
Portugal
Tel: +351 21 392 40 00
Opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 1pm and 2.30pm to 5pm

British Vice Consulate – Portimão www.gov.uk/world/organisations/british-vice-consulate-portimao

British Government advice on travelling in Portugal

www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/portugal

NHS guide to healthcare in Portugal

www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/Healthcareabroad/countryguide/Pages/healthcareinPortugal.aspx

If you need any further information then please call Legal Expert today and we’ll happily offer any advice we can as part of a free consultation.