Stafford woman's Spanish holiday ruined by illness

Emma Leavy, from Stafford, was given an anti-sickness injection by the on-site doctor during her holiday at the Sentido Don Pedro in Mallorca, in May, after she fell ill with symptoms including nausea, projectile vomiting and diarrhoea.

Ms Leavy started to develop illness symptoms on May 18, four days into her week-long stay at the Sentido Don Pedro.

She recalls: “It all started when I began to feel extremely nauseous and then shortly after I began to vomit. It was absolutely horrendous and I could not believe that I was so unwell.

“This was supposed to be a relaxing holiday and it was a break I had saved up for, for some time, so I was absolutely devastated.

After returning to the UK, Ms Leavy received a letter from Thomas Cook confirming there was an outbreak of illness at the hotel.

The 37-year-old is now instructing Irwin Mitchell’s international personal injury team to investigate whether more could have been done to prevent her from being affected.

She added: “After I came home I got a letter confirming that there was an outbreak, so now I have a lot of questions about how I fell ill and whether more should have been done to stop it from happening.

"It is unacceptable that this happened and while the damage has been done to my holiday, I hope that steps can be taken to stop anyone else facing what I went through.”

Legal expert Irwin Mitchell has vast experience in holiday illness cases and have recovered millions of pounds in damages, having represented large group actions against Hotels and Cruise Lines.

Jennifer Mullins, the firm's lawyer representing Ms Leavy, said: “We are deeply concerned by the account provided to us by our client in relation to her holiday, which was her first trip abroad in many years and one which she had saved for, for some time.

“Holiday illnesses of this nature can be serious and often have a significant impact on the health of those affected, leaving them with ongoing symptoms from which they may never fully recover.

“We have now commenced investigations into what our client suffered and, as part of our work, would be keen to hear from anyone else who may also have been affected by this apparent outbreak. Lessons must be learned from the problems.”

Thomas Cook has apologised to Ms Leavy and continues to investigate her case.

A spokesman said: “We want our customers to have the best possible time on holiday, so we are sorry to hear that Ms Leavy was ill.

"We supported Emma when she was taken ill in resort, and on her return to the UK we apologised for the impact her experience had on her holiday.

"We take reports of illness seriously and are continuing to investigate this case thoroughly.”