Spanish police launch investigation into 800 British tourists who have made food poisoning claims against hotels

Brits staying in Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza were apparently targeted by 'claim farmers'

Many of the tourists visited Ibiza (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Spanish police have launched an investigation into 800 British holidaymakers who have made food poisoning claims against hotels in the Balearic Islands.

They suspect that people maybe trying to fraudulently claim compensation, as the hotels question passed all health inspections and only a few of the holidaymakers visited a doctor.

Holidaymakers in Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza were apparently targeted by “claim farmers” who would promise large pay-outs through compensation if they made the claims.

At the time, British law only required tourists to provide a receipt of medicine from a chemist to prove they had a stomach bug.

Speaking about their investigation, Spanish police said the claims made by British tourists “caused significant economic damage”.

“The investigations carried out by the National Police have allowed the identification of about 800 British tourists supposedly affected by food poisoning in establishments of the Balearic Islands," they said.

“They filed complaints through 77 law firms that would have orchestrated a possible criminal network based on false claims that have caused significant economic damage to the Spanish and Balearic tourism sector.

“These alleged intoxications occur despite the fact that Balearic hotels have passed all health inspections satisfactorily, including some carried out by the English tour operators themselves who then proceed to handle the claim.”

Spanish police also said that since opening the case a number of food poisoning claims from the UK which were pending have now been withdrawn.

The investigation comes less than a fortnight after a British couple were jailed for lying about suffering food poisoning on two successive trips to Spain.

Paul Roberts and Deborah Briton, from Wallasey, went on all-inclusive summer trips to the Globales América resort in Mallorca with their children in both 2015 and 2016.

They later claimed nearly £20,000 from Thomas Cook, saying they suffered from “severe gastric illness” on both holidays.

Roberts was sentence to 15 months in prison and Briton to nine months.