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Holiday accident Gran CanariaOn this page, you will find information and advice on making holiday accident claims in Gran Canaria, for accidents, injuries and illnesses that occurred while you were on holiday.

You will find information on how to deal with your emergency in Gran Canaria, and how to go about claiming holiday compensation when you get home.

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A Guide to Accident Claims in Gran Canaria

This guide to holiday accident claims in Gran Canaria contains plenty of information, advice and tips on how to successfully claim holiday compensation.

Gran Canaria is one of the most popular European travel destinations. Over 4.5 million tourists visit the island every year. Of these, around 30% of visitors, some 1.2 million, are from the UK.

Most of these UK holidaymakers enjoy some fun in the sun, and return home safely to the UK from Gran Canaria at the end of their holiday. However, for some, their holiday is ruined due to becoming the victim of an accident, suffering an injury, or becoming sick while they are on holiday. This guide has been produced for these unfortunate UK tourists. It contains the following information:

  • What you should do if you have become the victim of an accident, suffered an injury, or contracted an illness while you are on holiday in Gran Canaria. Both while you are still on holiday, and once you get home to the UK, to give you the best chance of successfully claiming holiday compensation.
  • Contact numbers for all of the emergency services in Gran Canaria, as well as UK Government facilities such as the British Embassy.
  • Detailed information on how to gain access to healthcare services in Gran Canaria, so that you can get the medical treatment you need while on holiday.
  • An overview of how UK based package holiday and tour operators are bound by legislation to protect UK holidaymakers if their trip as booked in the UK.
  • Information on the most common types of holiday compensation claims that Legal Expert makes on behalf of its clients, as well as an overview of our No Win No Fee national holiday compensation claims service.

What to Do If You Have an Accident or Injury on Gran Canaria

In order to have the best chance of successfully making holiday accident compensation claims, there are a number of steps UK holidaymakers can take both while still on vacationing Gran Canaria, and when they get home to the UK.

Steps to take while you are still on holiday in Gran Canaria to give you the best chance of claiming holiday compensation:

  • If you are involved in an accident such as a car, motorcycle or bicycle crash, then make sure that the police are informed of the accident, even if they do not attend the scene of the crash. Keep a record of the names of the police officers you deal with, and also ask them if you can have the unique case ID number.
  • If you booked your holiday in Gran Canaria in the UK, through a UK based travel vendor, you must inform them of any accident, injury or illness you are the victim of while on holiday. Keep a record of the name of the person you speak to, and also ask if there is a unique reference number for the report.
  • Make sure that you receive proper medical care for any injury or illness. You will find full information on how to access healthcare services in Gran Canaria further down this page. Record the names of the doctors who treat you, and also ask if you can have a copy of your medical file.
  • If you have been involved in an accident, then be sure to gather the contact details of any witnesses to the event, even if they are local Spanish people. You may need to call on their testimony at some stage during your holiday compensation claim.
  • Take plenty of photographs of anything you feel is pertinent to your accident, illness or injury. For example, if you trip and injure yourself on a torn carpet, then be sure to photograph the carpet that caused the accident.
  • If you intend to claim for private medical treatment through your travel or health insurance, then contact them to let them know this. You will need to gain the approval of your insurance firm before you undergo private medical treatment. Informing them beforehand will speed up this process.

Steps to take when you return home to the UK after your holiday in Gran Canaria to give you the best chance of claiming holiday compensation:

  • If you have previously notified your package holiday vendor about the incident, then make a follow-up call to ensure they have all of the information recorded and all the facts straight.
  • Visit the hospital or your GP to have the injury or illness checked. This will make sure that you have been treated properly, and also make sure that your injury or illness is now recorded within the UK health system.
  • If you have been claiming for private medical treatment while on holiday in Gran Canaria, then contact your insurance firm and let them know you are back home, and that there will be no more claims.
  • Call Legal Expert on the number at the bottom of this page, so that we can explain how our national No Win No Fee holiday compensation claims service can help you.

The links below, will give you far more detailed information on the process of claiming compensation for accidents abroad, and also claiming against package holiday companies:

Claiming compensation for accidents abroad

Claiming compensation from package tour operators

Gran Canaria Emergency Contact Numbers

If you are involved in an accident, suffer an injury, or become sick while you are on holiday in Gran Canaria, then you will need to contact the emergency services. Below you will find all of the telephone numbers of the emergency services in Gran Canaria, and also contact information for the British Consulate.

  • General emergency number – 112 – you will be asked which emergency service you need, police, ambulance or fire service
  • Local police – 091
  • Negrin Hospital – 928 45 00 00
  • Insular Hospital – 928 44 40 00
  • Red Cross – 928 22 22 22
  • British Consulate Las Palmas de Gran Canaria – +34 928 267 774

Just to recap, these contact numbers will help you to take all of the key steps we outlined above, that will give you the best chance of successfully claiming holiday compensation when you get home to the UK, such as:

  • Making sure the police are informed of any accident
  • Getting proper medical treatment
  • Informing your package holiday vendor about the accident, illness or injury
  • Contacting your medical or health insurance firm

Getting Medical Treatment After an Accident

Visitors to Gran Canaria can receive free medical treatment in Spain, at the same level as Spanish citizens, as long as they have a valid European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). This is a free card that all UK residents can apply for. The following links give information on EHIC and also how to download the EHIC smartphone app.

European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) information

EHIC coverage goes only so far, and there are things it will not cover such as medical repatriation, ongoing medical treatment as an outpatient, and dental work. If you have lost your EHIC, or have forgotten to take it with you on your holiday in Gran Canaria, then you can apply for a temporary card by calling the Department of Health Overseas Healthcare on +44 191 218 1999.

A second alternative is to use private healthcare services for your medical treatment while you are on holiday in Gran Canaria. If you do, you will either need a valid insurance policy that will cover the costs or pay your medical bills out of your own pocket. If you intend to claim back medical expenses from an insurance company, you must be sure to clear any treatment you are being offered through your insurer first. Your insurance firm should deal directly with the provide healthcare providing in Gran Canaria. In some cases, though, you might need to pay your medical bills in cash while you are in Gran Canaria, and then claim the money back from your insurance firm when you return to the UK after your holiday in the Canary Islands.

Time Limits for A Canary Islands Accident and Illness Claims

If you need to claim compensation for holiday accidents, injuries and illnesses, you need to be aware that there are certain time limits within which you must begin your claim. These time limits are in the table below:

Edit
Circumstances of Claim Time Limit
On a pre-booked holiday, flight or trip that was booked in the UK. 3 years
On a privately booked holiday, flight or trip. 3 years
On a privately booked flight to or from:
• Gran Canaria Airport		 2 years

Gran Canaria Package Holiday Compensation Claims

If you have suffered an accident or injury, or become ill while on holiday in Gran Canaria, you may be able to claim package holiday compensation.

UK based package holiday and tour companies all have to operate under the Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992. These regulations protect UK citizens as long as the trip was booked in the UK. If you book your holiday in Gran Canaria from the UK through major UK based vendors such as Thomas Cook, Thomson or First Choice, you should have a very clear route to claiming holiday compensation. However, it is vital that if you become the victim of an accident, suffer an injury, or become sick while you are on vacation on Gran Canaria, that you notify your travel company. Below you will find contact details for a number of UK travel firms:

  • Thomas Cook, 020 7557 6400
  • First Choice, 0203 451 2720
  • Thomson/ TUI, 0203 451 2688

Injury Claims We Can Help with On Gran Canaria

The team of travel compensation solicitors we operate here at Legal Expert, have over 30-years of experience claiming across a wide range of different cases. The most common causes of accidents, injuries and illnesses that we deal with, are:

  • Food-related illnesses due to lack of hygiene and badly cooked food.
  • Falls from a hotel balcony.
  • Boating and cruise accidents.
  • Slips, trips and falls.
  • Injuries caused by collapsing furniture.
  • Injuries caused by faulty room facilities, such as a faulty plug socket or light switch.
  • Carbon monoxide poisoning due to inadequate hotel room ventilation.
  • Accidents whilst travelling on public or tour operator supplied transport such as buses, taxis and trains.
  • Accidents that take place in a swimming pool and surrounding area.

These are some of the main reasons we make holiday compensation claims on behalf of our clients. There are more of course, and if your own situation doesn’t slot into the list above, call us on the number at the bottom of the page to discuss your case.

Hotel Accident and Illness Claims in Gran Canaria

Claiming for holiday illness compensation from a hotel is quite a common occurrence. Often, hotel kitchens are preparing food for hundreds of guests each day. The stress of producing this volume of food can lead to mistakes being made. Hygiene can slip, or food may not be cooked properly. Additionally, many hotels offer a buffet style breakfast, meaning food could have been left out too long.

Of all the reasons to claim holiday illness compensation Gran Canaria visitors most commonly report food-related illnesses such as food poisoning.

Hotels are also places where there are many ways a resident can be injured in an accident. For example:

  • Slipping by the swimming pool
  • Accidents in the gym or while using exercise equipment
  • Trips on damaged flooring
  • Electric shocks due to faulty room fittings

If you were injured due to an accident in your hotel or have fallen foul of a food-related illness after eating in your hotel restaurant, then Legal Expert can help you claim the compensation you are entitled to.

Restaurant Illness, Accident or Food Poisoning Claims

If you have fallen ill whilst on an all-inclusive holiday to Gran Canaria, you will likely be eligible to claim compensation. Restaurants, especially those in an all-inclusive hotel, are often overworked. This leads to mistakes being made. It only takes one piece of undercooked meat or allowing bacteria to thrive by letting hygiene standards slip, to cause everything from a mild case of “Spanish Tummy” to full-blown food poisoning.

If you became ill after eating food in a restaurant while you were on holiday in Gran Canaria, then Legal Expert can help you to claim holiday compensation for the illness.

Slips, Trips and Falls

  • Slips, trips and falls are the most common types of accidents that we see UK holidaymakers claiming compensation for. A slip, trip or fall can happen anywhere, for many reasons including:
  • Slipping on a wet or dirty floor
  • Tripping on torn or worn carpeting
  • Falling down a badly lit stairway
  • Tripping as getting on or off some type of transport such as a bus, train or plane

If you have suffered a slip, trip or fall while you were on holiday on Gran Canaria, call Legal Expert today to begin a holiday compensation claim.

Sports Activity Claims

UK holidaymakers who are on holiday in Gran Canaria have access to a very wide range of sporting activities to try their hand at. Many of these sporting activities can be dangerous if the equipment is badly maintained, or adequate supervision is not given, such as:

  • Jet ski riding
  • Bodyboarding
  • Sailing
  • Scuba diving and snorkelling
  • Horse riding tours
  • Quad bike tours
  • Rock climbing

If you have been injured whilst undertaking a sporting activity such as those listed above, while you were on holiday in Gran Canaria, the Legal Expert can likely help you claim holiday compensation.

Car or Road Traffic Accidents in Gran Canaria

Every year in Spain there are more than 1,500 fatal road traffic accidents. This means that for a number of UK holidaymakers visiting the country each year, their holiday could be ruined by a car, bicycle or motorcycle crash.

If you are unfortunate and are involved in a road traffic accident while you are on holiday on Gran Canaria, then be sure to take the following steps:

  • Make sure the police are notified about the accident
  • Take contact details for all witnesses
  • Take photographs of the vehicles involved, the licence numbers and drivers

Do I Need to Use a Spanish Lawyer for My Claim?

There is absolutely no advantage at all in using a local Spanish lawyer to make Canary Islands accident and illness claims. You can use a legal team back home to claim compensation from Spanish companies.

Legal Expert offers our national holiday compensation claims service as the simplest, most risk-free way to make a claim for an accident, injury or illness that occurred while you were on holiday on Gran Canaria.

No Win No Fee Holiday Sickness and Injury Claims

We offer most of our clients our No Win No Fee holiday sickness and injury claims services as the best way for them to claim damages for an illness, accident or injury that occurred while you were on holiday on Gran Canaria.

Our No Win No Fee scheme means you don’t have to pay us anything when we start your claim, and we won’t charge you anything during the time we are making your claim. And if we lost your case, then we won’t charge you anything at all. The only time we will ask you to pay our legal fees, is when we actually win you a compensation payment. This means that our No Win No Fee holiday compensation claims service is a financially risk-free way to make a claim.

Popular Holiday Resorts Of Gran Canaria

  • Las Palmas
  • Maspalomas
  • Teror
  • Agaete
  • Arucas, Las Palmas
  • Telde
  • Puerto de Mogán
  • Meloneras
  • Playa del Inglés
  • Puerto Rico
  • Agua La Perra
  • Arguineguin
  • Bahia Feliz
  • San Agustín
  • Taurito
  • Patalavaca

Start Your Claim

If you have been the victim of an accident, suffered an injury, or contracted an illness in Gran Canaria then you might able to claim holiday compensation. You should call us on 0800 073 8804 today so that we can evaluate your claim, and let you know what we think you need to do next. In most cases, we will offer to take on your holiday compensation claim under a No Win No Fee agreement.

Other Useful Compensation Guides

Useful Links

British Embassy Madrid

Torre Espacio

Paseo de la Castellana 259D

28046 Madrid

Spain

Tel: +34 917 146 300

Opening times: Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 5 pm

British Consulate Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

Calle Luis Morote 6-3º

35007 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

Spain

Tel: +34 928 26 25 08

Opening hours: Tuesdays and Fridays from 8:30 am to 1:30 pm, excluding public holidays. Consular phone lines are open from 8 am to 4 pm.

At the link below, you will find detailed information on how to gain access to healthcare services in Spain if you are a UK holidaymaker.

NHS information on accessing healthcare in Spain

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    Meet The Team

    • Patrick Mallon legal expert author

      Patrick is a Grade A solicitor having qualified in 2005. He's an an expert in accident at work and public liability claims and is currently our head of the EL/PL department. Get in touch today for free to see how we can help you.

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