An accident during a holiday in Cyprus often becomes a legal problem only after the visitor has returned home. The hotel may have stopped responding, the relevant photographs may be on a telephone, and the traveller may be unsure whether a local claim can be pursued at all.
Returning home does not, in itself, prevent a claim. A Cyprus lawyer can take instructions from abroad, investigate what happened, identify the proper defendant, deal with insurers and conduct the claim on the client’s behalf. The essential questions are the familiar ones: was there a duty of care, was it breached, did that breach cause the injury, and what loss resulted?
Where the accident occurred in Cyprus, the Civil Wrongs Law (Cap. 148) is the natural starting point. Section 3(2) provides for the Law’s application to a civil wrong committed in the Republic, subject to the rules of private international law. It does not, however, answer every question about the appropriate forum or the law governing a particular claim. An overseas tour operator, package booking or foreign company may require separate analysis.
Where these claims arise
The settings are familiar: hotels and resorts, restaurants, rented accommodation, swimming pools, gyms, playgrounds, waterparks, excursion boats and tourist attractions. The incident may be a slip on a wet surface, a fall on stairs or a balcony, an injury caused by equipment or a collision involving a taxi, hire car, coach, motorcycle, bicycle or pedestrian.
The fact that someone was injured does not, by itself, establish liability. A spill may have occurred moments before the fall. A defect may have been visible or properly marked. The relevant questions include how the accident happened, how long the danger existed, who knew or should have known about it, what system of inspection or cleaning was in place and whether a warning was adequate.
A practical difficulty arises quite often at the outset: the name on the booking confirmation may not be the company operating the hotel. There may be separate owner, operator, management and maintenance companies. An excursion may be provided by an independent activity or transport business. Identifying those parties is part of the legal work, not a formality.
Who may be responsible?
Section 51 of Cap. 148 is the provision most often engaged in a premises claim. In broad terms, it describes negligence as doing what a reasonable and prudent person would not do, failing to do what such a person would do, or failing to exercise the skill and care expected of a reasonably qualified person in the relevant profession, trade or occupation, where damage results.
Section 51(2)(b) deals with the duty owed by the occupier of immovable property to a person lawfully present. It also addresses the owner’s and occupier’s responsibility in relation to maintenance and repair. The duty is one of reasonable care. It is not a guarantee that no guest will ever fall, slip or suffer an injury. Whether the duty was breached depends on the risk and the circumstances in which the premises were being used.
“Occupier” has a specific meaning. It generally refers to the person entitled, as against the owner, to possess or use the property, or, if there is no such person, the owner. The hotel’s trading name is therefore not enough to identify the defendant. The ownership documents, operating arrangements and relevant contracts may need to be obtained.
There may also be responsibility for the conduct of employees. Section 13 deals with the liability of a “master” for acts or omissions of a “servant”. In an ordinary employment relationship, this is the employer’s potential vicarious liability where the act was authorised or approved, or was committed in the course of employment. The employee may remain personally liable. If cleaning, maintenance, transport or an activity has been outsourced, the contract and the reality of the working arrangements must be examined. Calling a company a contractor does not settle the issue.
Evidence, and what to do after an accident
A claimant must prove the case on the balance of probabilities: duty, breach, causation and recoverable loss. In practice, however, most disputes are decided by the quality of the evidence.
The useful steps are not complicated, but they need to be taken promptly. Obtain medical attention and keep the reports, prescriptions and receipts. Report the incident to the hotel, business or activity provider and ask for a written record. In a serious accident or road collision, obtain the relevant police or emergency-service reference.
Photographs should show the exact location, the hazard, the surrounding area, lighting, signs and, where relevant, footwear or equipment. Take note of witnesses and keep their contact details. Ask the hotel or business to preserve CCTV and maintenance or cleaning records; footage may be overwritten quickly.
Keep booking confirmations, messages with the hotel or tour representative, travel expenses and evidence of lost earnings. It is also sensible to pause before signing an incident statement, accepting a payment or voucher, or signing a document described as a release or full and final settlement. What appears to be routine paperwork may affect the claim.
Medical evidence must link the injury to the accident and explain the prognosis. It may also need to distinguish the effects of the accident from a pre-existing condition or a later, unrelated event. A diagnosis is important, but it is not, on its own, a valuation.
Returning home after the accident
A client does not usually need to remain in Cyprus merely to instruct a lawyer. Much of the investigation and pre-action work can be handled from abroad. Instructions, photographs and documents can be sent electronically; the lawyer can contact the relevant businesses and insurers, obtain information and medical evidence, and negotiate on the client’s behalf.
That does not mean that attendance in Cyprus can never be required. Depending on the injury and the issues in dispute, the client may need to attend a medical assessment, approve a witness statement, take part in a conference or give oral evidence. If proceedings are issued, the Court will determine the appropriate procedure for the case. A written retainer should set out the work to be undertaken, the fees and expenses, and the authority given to the lawyer. A power of attorney or other formal authority may be required for a particular step.
How the claim is dealt with
The initial review should establish the facts, medical position and possible defendants. It should also identify the insurer, preserve evidence and consider whether a package holiday or booking contract creates a separate contractual claim against an overseas business.
Once the likely defendants are known, they are notified of the claim and asked to preserve relevant records. A letter of claim will normally describe the accident, the alleged failure, the injuries and the losses known at that stage. It should be supported by evidence and should not claim more than the facts justify.
Many matters settle through correspondence and negotiation. An early offer should be considered against the medical prognosis and the full range of losses, rather than accepted simply because it is available. If liability or value cannot be agreed, proceedings may be issued before the competent Cyprus Court. The case may then involve pleadings, disclosure, witness evidence, expert evidence and, if necessary, a trial.
The involvement of a foreign tour operator or insurer can affect jurisdiction, applicable law and the parties to be sued. The accident having occurred in Cyprus is important, but it does not automatically make every business connected with the holiday liable.
Damages and contributory negligence
Damages are assessed by reference to the injury and its consequences. They may include general damages for pain, suffering and loss of amenity, as well as financial losses such as medical and rehabilitation expenses, medication, travel, care and assistance, lost earnings and, in a serious case, future loss of earnings or reduced earning capacity.
Each head of loss needs evidence. A claim for help provided by a family member, for example, should explain what assistance was given and for how long. Future financial losses generally require medical and employment or earnings evidence. The duration and severity of the symptoms, treatment, effect on ordinary activities, prognosis and any lasting disability will all be relevant.
Section 57 of Cap. 148 deals with contributory negligence. A claimant’s own fault does not automatically defeat the claim, but the Court reduces damages to the extent it considers just and equitable having regard to the claimant’s responsibility for the damage. Ignoring a clear warning or using equipment contrary to instructions may be relevant, although the result depends on the facts. A warning does not automatically excuse an unsafe condition.
The same care is needed with waivers, disclaimers and settlement documents. Their wording, the circumstances in which they were signed and the applicable law all matter. An early settlement may be sensible in some cases, but it should not be accepted before the medical position and likely losses are understood.
In a fatal accident, section 58 of Cap. 148 provides the relevant statutory framework. Section 58(20) requires the statutory action under that section to be brought within three years from the date of death. The people entitled to benefit, the losses claimed and the procedural requirements are different from those in a claim brought by an injured survivor.
Time limits
Limitation should be considered before the investigation is complete, not afterwards. Under section 6(2) of the Limitation of Actionable Rights Law of 2012 (Law 66(I)/2012), an action for damages for negligence, nuisance or breach of statutory duty is generally subject to a three-year period. Time runs from the date on which the basis of the action was completed, subject to the statutory rule where the person who suffered bodily injury became aware of it later.
Section 6(3) gives the Court a discretion, in an action for damages for bodily injury or death caused by a civil wrong, not to apply the limitation provisions where the statutory factors justify that course. The Court may consider the reason for the delay, any incapacity, efforts made to obtain the necessary evidence, the defendant’s conduct and the effect of delay on the reliability or availability of evidence. That discretion is limited and cannot be exercised after two years from the expiry of the right to sue.
A letter to an insurer, a complaint to the hotel or continuing negotiations do not, by themselves, make the limitation position safe. The applicable date must be calculated from the facts of the particular case, and protective steps should be taken where necessary.
How A. Danos & Associates LLC can help
A. Danos & Associates LLC assists tourists injured in Cyprus from the initial assessment through to settlement or proceedings before the Cyprus Courts. We identify the proper defendants and insurers, preserve CCTV and other evidence, obtain medical information, assess financial losses, negotiate with insurers and issue proceedings where appropriate.
Much of the work can be handled while the client is abroad. We explain what evidence is needed, keep the client informed and arrange any attendance that becomes necessary. If you were injured in Cyprus and have since returned home, prompt advice is important because evidence can disappear and the limitation period continues to run.
