The news that two Thomas Cook staff will go to trial over the death of two children in Corfu in 2006 is nothing short of a scandal and I can only think of what Nicola Gibson and Richard Carson are going through. People will say what they are going through is nothing compared to what the parents of the two children have gone through. But in the same way as the tragedy could have been avoided, the trial of two innocent people could also have been avoided.
Reps are not qualified to know whether a boiler is installed faultily. In my time as a rep I filled out many safety forms and felt that I wasn’t qualified to answer some of the questions. Even if they were qualified, it wouldn’t be feasible for the reps to check every boiler on the property.
I strongly believe the EU Package Tours Directive is a misguided piece of legislation. Tour operators should only be held responsible for parts of a package they have control over. They don’t have any control over the running of a hotel they don’t manage, so how can they be held responsible for its safety?
For Nicola and Richard this has been hanging over them for the last three years. Unfortunately, it isn’t over yet and let’s hope sense prevails and maybe the British government can be of some assistance. The Facebook support group is here.
