Portugal Holiday Compensation Claims

Claiming for Portugal holiday compensation

The beautiful country of Portugal has always been a hit with British holidaymakers, with its cluster of beautiful cities, its pristine beaches, its great golfing resorts and its wonderful culture. From the cosmopolitan cities of Porto and Lisbon to the southern beach resorts that are family favourites, there’s something for everyone in Portugal.

Lisbon is Portugal’s capital and an increasingly popular destination with tourists. With a distinctly Mediterranean feel, Lisbon has a variety of world-famous museums and heritage sites, plus plenty of beautiful local beaches for those looking to top up their tan.

Funchal was declared a city in its own right back in the 1500s and is now renowned as the capital of Madeira, the autonomous island just off the coast of North Africa. The city is now renowned for its wine and crafts, and it continues to attract visitors that are looking for a city break without the bustle of most European capitals.

With twenty different beaches to choose from, a wealth of golf courses and an array of family-friendly hotels, Albufeira is the prime holiday destination in Portugal. The area sits at the very southern tip of Portugal, offering spectacular sunsets and views, as well as breath-taking cliffs and historic fortresses.

But what happens when your dream trip to Portugal goes horribly wrong? Accidents, injuries and illnesses are thankfully fairly rare, but when they do happen to tourists, they can ruin an entire holiday.

At Your Legal Friend, we know exactly how stressful and traumatic an injury or illness abroad can be. Navigating foreign hospitals with significant language barriers can be overwhelming, not to mention the fact that there are often costly medical bills and additional travel expenses to take care of.

That’s why our team of specialist personal injury lawyers can help you pursue your holiday compensation claim. If you’ve been injured or fallen ill while holidaying in Portugal, through no fault of your own, we can help you make a compensation claim that will hold whoever is responsible to account.

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View of Porto and bridge, Portugal

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Our holiday illness team have years of experience pursuing claims on behalf of disappointed holidaymakers.

Portugal holiday claims team

At Your Legal Friend, our experienced holiday injury solicitors will review your case for holiday compensation and take you step by step through the process of pursuing your holiday sickness claim.

If you’d like advice as to whether you might be able to pursue a holiday accident or illness claim, either call our freephone number or submit your details through the form on this page and we’ll be in touch to schedule a phone call at a time that’s convenient for you. If you decide that you’d like to start a claim, one of our lawyers will be able to tell you whether you can enter into a No Win, No Fee agreement. A ‘No Win, No Fee’ agreement means that in the event your claim is unsuccessful, and you have co-operated fully with us throughout, you won’t have to pay any legal costs, so there’s no financial risk to you.

Talk to us today

For an informal, confidential chat with one of our specialist medical negligence solicitors, call us now (calls free from landlines and mobiles). Or just complete the 'Start a new claim’ form and we'll call you back.

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There are many people injured in accidents each year through no fault of their own and the circumstances will be different in each instance. Our team has extensive experience of successfully managing a wide range of personal injury claims, so we can help you secure the maximum compensation you deserve.

Alison Saul

Director of Personal Injury

What our customers say

“I found the staff to be friendly, helpful, courteous and they kept me well informed on a regular basis”

Mrs. Vora,
Loughborough

“They acted in a sympathetic and professional manner and resolved my case very efficiently”

Mr Dowse
Leeds

For a confidential chat, call one of our experts today 0151 550 5228

10 simple steps to claim

Step
1

Obtaining a full description of your accident or illness

Step
2

Obtaining your medical records

Step
3

Contacting the company responsible for your accident or illness

Step
4

Arranging your medical assessment

Step
5

Collating details of your financial loss

Step
86

Negotiating the maximum settlement possibleProviding you with our valuation of your losses

Step
7

Sending your valuation to the other party's insurer

Step
68

Providing you with our valuation of your lossesNegotiating the maximum settlement possible

Step
9

Issuing Court proceedings

Step
10

Sending you your compensation payment

START YOUR CLAIM ONLINE NOW

Your questions... answered

What are the most common accidents and illnesses in Portugal? What can I claim for? How long do I have to make a claim? What is the process for Portugal holiday claims? How is Portugal compensation calculated? Why should I contact Your Legal Friend about my case?

What are the most common accidents and illnesses in Portugal?

Here are some of the main accidents and injuries tourists may face if they visit Portugal:

Food poisoning and travel bugs

Hotel buffets, undercooked food, unhygienic food handling practices and contamination of food products can all cause food poisoning or parasites, as well as a range of other illnesses that can keep holidaymakers confined to their hotel rooms for large chunks of their holiday.

Swimming pools are also a hotbed of bacteria, especially if they’re not cleaned or maintained properly.

Trips, slips and falls

A slip or a trip can be harmless, resulting in some embarrassment and perhaps a small bruise – but they can also cause fractures, bone breakages and more severe muscle injuries that can take many months to heal.

Excursions, accidents in airports, transfers, coach trips

Many tourists visiting Portugal like to go on coach trips and other excursions to see some of the country’s other attractions. Unfortunately, some of these trips can be run by travel operators with a limited grasp of health and safety regulations. If you experience an accident or fall ill as a result, you could pursue a claim.

Accidents can happen even before your holiday starts. You may have been injured boarding or disembarking a plane, had an item fall on you from an overhead locker, or been injured retrieving your luggage from the carousel or during your transfer to your hotel. As these are all covered by your package holiday, you could have a valid compensation claim.

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What can I claim for?

Compensation for accidents and illnesses abroad can only be claimed for package holidays, most of which are covered by the Package Travel Regulations 1992. Under Regulation 2(1), hotel owners and tour operators have a ‘duty of care’ towards the health and safety of you, your family and anyone else in your party.

This Regulation states that a package must include the pre-arranged combination of at least two of the following components:

Transport
Accommodation
Other tourist services that are additional to transport or accommodation, and which account for a significant proportion of the package. This can include pre-booked excursions.

If you are harmed while using any facilities promoted or controlled by your tour operator as part of your package, you could have grounds to make a claim for compensation.

How long do I have to make a claim?

The Package Travel Regulations allow you 3 years to make a claim from the date when the illness or accident occurred. However, if your illness or accident happened on a cruise, this would be governed by the Athens Convention which are a different set of regulations that only allow 2 years in which to make a claim.

What is the process for Portugal holiday claims?

If you’ve had a holiday ruined by an accident that wasn’t your fault, or an illness you’ve picked up as a result of someone else’s negligence, Your Legal Friend could help. We’ll support you in making a compensation claim for the pain and stress caused to you while you were abroad, as well as covering additional travel costs and any future medical treatments that might be required throughout your recovery.

First of all, we need to understand what happened to you and why you believe the accident or illness was not your fault. We’ll take statements from you and any witnesses, obtain incident reports, and search for medical reports to get a better idea of what happened, how you were affected, what treatment you were given, and whether you are still suffering from your injury or illness.

Then we’ll launch a thorough investigation, with the aim of identifying who was at fault for your injury or illness. Once we’ve discovered whose negligence caused this, can then assess how likely your claim is to succeed and how much compensation we can secure for you.

If you then agree to go ahead, we’ll send your claim to whoever is responsible for your injuries or illness. They can either accept the claim and seek to negotiate a settlement with you – this is often the preferred choice of many larger firms looking to protect their reputation – or they can reject the claim in which case we take the case to Court. In this instance, we’ll manage the process of preparing your claim to go to Court and support you every step of the way.

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How is Portugal compensation calculated?

If your claim is successful, you’ll be awarded compensation. How much you’ll be awarded depends on various criteria:

The severity of the injury or illness. A broken bone or amputation is likely to be classed as far more serious than a muscle strain or stomach bug.
How your life has been affected. Some unfortunate holidaymakers experience life-changing injuries or illnesses while abroad – the compensation awarded will reflect this.
Whether you’ve been left out of pocket. Medical bills and additional travel expenses can wreak havoc on a family’s finances. This part of the compensation sees that you’re adequately compensated for your losses.
Whether you’ll need extra support in the future. If your injury or illness will lead to loss of income, or if you’ll need ongoing treatment and care to deal with the injury, this will be taken into account.

Why should I contact Your Legal Friend about my case?

No win, no fee - guaranteed
95% success rate in personal injury claims
Over £200,000,000 successfully won in the last ten years alone
Help and support you with your claim against the travel company or carrier
30 years’ experience in personal injury compensation

Here are some of the main accidents and injuries tourists may face if they visit Portugal:

Food poisoning and travel bugs

Hotel buffets, undercooked food, unhygienic food handling practices and contamination of food products can all cause food poisoning or parasites, as well as a range of other illnesses that can keep holidaymakers confined to their hotel rooms for large chunks of their holiday.

Swimming pools are also a hotbed of bacteria, especially if they’re not cleaned or maintained properly.

Trips, slips and falls

A slip or a trip can be harmless, resulting in some embarrassment and perhaps a small bruise – but they can also cause fractures, bone breakages and more severe muscle injuries that can take many months to heal.

Excursions, accidents in airports, transfers, coach trips

Many tourists visiting Portugal like to go on coach trips and other excursions to see some of the country’s other attractions. Unfortunately, some of these trips can be run by travel operators with a limited grasp of health and safety regulations. If you experience an accident or fall ill as a result, you could pursue a claim.

Accidents can happen even before your holiday starts. You may have been injured boarding or disembarking a plane, had an item fall on you from an overhead locker, or been injured retrieving your luggage from the carousel or during your transfer to your hotel. As these are all covered by your package holiday, you could have a valid compensation claim.

Read less

Compensation for accidents and illnesses abroad can only be claimed for package holidays, most of which are covered by the Package Travel Regulations 1992. Under Regulation 2(1), hotel owners and tour operators have a ‘duty of care’ towards the health and safety of you, your family and anyone else in your party.

This Regulation states that a package must include the pre-arranged combination of at least two of the following components:

Transport
Accommodation
Other tourist services that are additional to transport or accommodation, and which account for a significant proportion of the package. This can include pre-booked excursions.

If you are harmed while using any facilities promoted or controlled by your tour operator as part of your package, you could have grounds to make a claim for compensation.

The Package Travel Regulations allow you 3 years to make a claim from the date when the illness or accident occurred. However, if your illness or accident happened on a cruise, this would be governed by the Athens Convention which are a different set of regulations that only allow 2 years in which to make a claim.

If you’ve had a holiday ruined by an accident that wasn’t your fault, or an illness you’ve picked up as a result of someone else’s negligence, Your Legal Friend could help. We’ll support you in making a compensation claim for the pain and stress caused to you while you were abroad, as well as covering additional travel costs and any future medical treatments that might be required throughout your recovery.

First of all, we need to understand what happened to you and why you believe the accident or illness was not your fault. We’ll take statements from you and any witnesses, obtain incident reports, and search for medical reports to get a better idea of what happened, how you were affected, what treatment you were given, and whether you are still suffering from your injury or illness.

Then we’ll launch a thorough investigation, with the aim of identifying who was at fault for your injury or illness. Once we’ve discovered whose negligence caused this, can then assess how likely your claim is to succeed and how much compensation we can secure for you.

If you then agree to go ahead, we’ll send your claim to whoever is responsible for your injuries or illness. They can either accept the claim and seek to negotiate a settlement with you – this is often the preferred choice of many larger firms looking to protect their reputation – or they can reject the claim in which case we take the case to Court. In this instance, we’ll manage the process of preparing your claim to go to Court and support you every step of the way.

Read less

If your claim is successful, you’ll be awarded compensation. How much you’ll be awarded depends on various criteria:

The severity of the injury or illness. A broken bone or amputation is likely to be classed as far more serious than a muscle strain or stomach bug.
How your life has been affected. Some unfortunate holidaymakers experience life-changing injuries or illnesses while abroad – the compensation awarded will reflect this.
Whether you’ve been left out of pocket. Medical bills and additional travel expenses can wreak havoc on a family’s finances. This part of the compensation sees that you’re adequately compensated for your losses.
Whether you’ll need extra support in the future. If your injury or illness will lead to loss of income, or if you’ll need ongoing treatment and care to deal with the injury, this will be taken into account.