Damages awarded to a Briton who walked into a plate glass door in her Barbados hotel could throw holiday operators into turmoil, the Appeal Court was told.
Moira Japp, 53, was wearing a bikini when she suffered the deep lacerations. In October last year, a judge at Brighton county court found Virgin Holidays 80 per cent liable for the injuries and awarded Mrs Japp £24,000 damages.
The holiday company has now appealed claiming that the award would "create great difficulties for the tourist industry" by applying British health and safety standards to "far flung exotic places".
Mrs Japp’s lawsuit claimed Virgin Holidays ought to have ensured there was toughened or safety glass in the French windows between her room and the balcony. But Sarah Prager, for Virgin Holidays, told the Appeal Court in London "some nations are more risk averse than others".
Andrew Spencer, for Mrs Japp, of Worthing, said: “When people book a package holiday, they are entitled to expect that the facilities are not unsafe.” The court’s judgment will be given later.
