Ryan Mendelson was enjoying a two-week package holiday in Cape Verde when he said a staff member at the Hotel RIU Touareg ‘kneed’ him in the back of the knees
A British tourist’s holiday turned into a nightmare that left him needing surgery after a member of staff at the hotel he was staying at ‘kneed’ him in the back of the leg.
Ryan Mendelson, from Manchester, has won thousands in compensation after the incident. Ryan says he “fell to the floor like a sack of potatoes” when a member of the entertainment staff at the Hotel RIU Touareg in Cape Verde carried out what he called an “unprovoked assault.”
Now, having worked with lawyers at Hudgell Solicitors, he has won £18,000 in compensation. In a statement Ryan said: “This staff member wasn’t a friend of mine. I didn’t have any ‘banter’ with him. I just don’t know why he did it, other than being over-familiar and thinking he was just having a laugh. But the way I see it is that it was an unprovoked assault.”
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Ryan had booked a two-week package holiday with Tui and was just days away from going home when the incident happened. He said: “I was standing at the bar-pool area talking to two girls I’d met and, all of a sudden and completely out of nowhere, he came behind me and kneed me in the back of the knee. I felt my knee click, twist and go out of place, and I fell to the floor like a sack of potatoes. I was in a state of shock and couldn’t move.”
Other hotel guests went to help Ryan, keeping him cool by pouring water on him while someone went to find a wheelchair, reports the Manchester Evening News. Ryan added: “Mum was distraught. There were no first-aiders around the pool and no hotel staff to help. The guy from the animation team who attacked me kept apologising, but he was forced to take me to reception as there was no-one else around.”
Ryan was rushed to a local hospital in an ambulance where he had an X-ray and injection in his knee, costing him 86 Euros. But, Ryan and his mum were then met with more costs, with Ryan saying: “We were also told we had to pay for another night in the hotel. But they eventually settled that bill as Mum said we’d contact every newspaper in the world to tell them what had happened – even if it meant us sitting on the steps of the hotel all night.”
In the end, the family were forced to delay their flight home, with Ryan also having to book two extra seats on the new flight and wear a leg brace to support his knee. He said missing their original flight was “soul-destroying.” Back in the UK, an MRI revealed he had torn a medial patellogemoral ligament which would need surgery.
Even now, Ryan says his knee is “still not 100 per cent”. He said: “I still suffer the odd pain after surgery – often in cold weather. I deal with it the best I can, and I also see a therapist once a week, which helps from a mental side of things.”
Ryan slammed Tui’s handling of his case, calling it “scatty, arrogant and dismissive”. He also urged hotel staff members to respect their boundaries. He said: “Animation teams are always over-friendly. I’ve seen it before how close they can get, but this was something completely different and totally unacceptable.”
Accident abroad specialist Paul Rimmer was part of the legal team that represented Ryan. He called it an ‘extraordinary case’, saying: “It was tantamount to a physical assault from an employee working at a world-renowned hotel chain. Put simply, Ryan was mistreated from the outset. It was, frankly, a disgrace that the hotel asked the Mendelsons to pay for another night when they were stranded because of the actions of one of their staff members. Tui’s response was also substandard. Ryan and his mother desperately needed support throughout the ordeal, but they reacted sluggishly from start to finish and were nowhere to be seen when two of their clients reached out for urgent help.
“We have, sadly, noticed a growing trend of blue-chip tourism groups not offering the care and support their customers deserve when a holiday abroad turns into a nightmare. Ryan’s situation was unique, but shoddy customer service has become all too common. Holidaymakers are therefore recommended to seek expert legal advice if they feel entitled to make a compensation claim following an accident abroad.”
When contacted for comment, a spokesperson for RIU Hotels and Resorts said: “At RIU Hotels & Resorts, we are very sorry for the injury sustained by Mr Mendelson during his holiday. The incident stemmed from a misguided attempt at a playful interaction by a member of the hotel’s entertainment team and was never intended to cause harm. We recognise the pain and distress this caused and sincerely regret what happened. The matter has been fully investigated, and has now been settled with the customer. At RIU we are fully committed with the safety and wellbeing of our guests and make a daily effort to prevent incidents like this from happening.”
TUI was also contacted for a statement.