£5,000 Settlement
Our client was making her way to board an EasyJet plane at Luton Airport on her way to Spain. She slipped on water inside the terminal building and as a result had broken a bone in her foot. The airport and the cleaning company they employed both denied liability.
The claim is interesting because, although EasyJet had done nothing wrong they were liable to pay compensation under the Montreal Convention 1999. Article 17 of the Convention makes the carrier liable for injury sustained by a passenger provided the accident took place on board the aircraft or in the course of any of the operations of embarking or disembarking. In this case our client was ‘embarking’ because she was walking to the boarding gate. EasyJet accepted they were liable under the terms of the Convention and settled the claim.
The claim is also interesting because although court proceedings in personal injury claims must usually be issued within 3 years of the accident any claim under the Montreal Convention has to be issued within 2 years. This can catch out the inexperienced solicitor.