Ruined holidays

In an article in the Law Society Gazette of 17 June, District Judge Graeme Smith considered guidance on damages in holiday claims. In particular he quoted para 37 of the judgment of Lord Justice Ward in Milner v Carnival Plc (t/a Cunard) [2010] EWCA Civ 389 in respect of damages for distress and disappointment. The judge referred to different bands of awards under this head which had been extracted from other decisions by counsel. The analysis showed that awards were highest for holidays involving a marriage abroad (where awards had ranged from £4,360 to £4,406 after adjustment for inflation) then for honeymoons (£321 to £1,890), then for special holidays (£264 to £1,161), and finally for ‘run of the mill’ holidays (£83 to £876). The author said that although there is no suggestion that these figures will have anything like the status of the Judicial Studies Board guidelines, they nonetheless provide a very welcome introduction to the assessment of damages in holiday cases.