Fake Food Poisoning Claims at Hotels to Be Investigated
Jennifer Billock June 13, 2017
Private investigators have been called in to prosecute fake food poisoning claims in Spain and Mallorca.
Mallorca and Spain have faced a nauseating amount of illegitimate food poisoning claims at their all-inclusive resorts from British travelers looking to cash in on a policy that refunds tourists who have fallen ill at the fault of the resort. It’s happened so often that the countries have called in private investigators to prosecute people making the claim falsely.
The complaints are apparently part of a larger scheme run by Brits who claim to be part of a law firm. They look for tourists in the two countries and encourage them to file false claims to exploit a loophole in the laws. Some of the payouts from hotel settlements are reaching £5,000. The claims are always filed after the travelers return to the U.K. The private investigators will make it so that people can be prosecuted while still in Spain.
“The purpose is to be able to have direct information on how these clients are captured,” Inmaculada de Benio, president of the Majorca Hotel Federation, told IB-3 Radio in a statement reported by The Sun. “We must remember that the modus operandi of these scammers is that they catch tourists and encourage them to file a complaint for the poor state of the food, with the corresponding medical evidence. What happens is that the complaints are filed when they return to the United Kingdom with the clear objective of obtaining compensation for it.”
The claims have already allegedly cost the Spanish hotel industry about €60 million.
[Photo: Shutterstock]
