An independent report into the deaths of two children in Corfu in 2006 has accused travel firm Thomas Cook of “significant” health and safety shortcomings.
Bobby and Christi Shepherd, aged six and seven, were poisoned by carbon monoxide gas at the Louis Corcyra Beach Hotel, in Corfu.
The review into the firm’s customer health and safety procedures and crisis management was carried out by former Sainsbury’s chief executive Justin King.
Mr King said there were “significant shortcomings” in the implementation of the travel company’s health and safety strategy had been identified.
“Decisions were often not taken in the thoughtful and caring way you would expect from a company such as Thomas Cook,” said Mr King.
The review highlighted that parts of the business, including the airline and destination management, protected costs ahead of customer experience.
Thomas Cook said the report made for “uncomfortable reading in parts”.
Peter Fankhauser, chief executive of Thomas Cook, said: “It took us nine years to correct the mistakes of the past and to do what everyone would have expected of us; treat the family with the respect and empathy they deserve.
“We had to learn from this tragedy and do things differently, and this remains our commitment.”
He said he the review would “serve as a catalyst” for the changes the company was making.
An inquest into the children’s deaths earlier this year found the tour operator had “breached its duty of care”, and that the children, from Horbury near Wakefield, had been unlawfully killed.
Mr King’s review said, including Bobby and Christi, there had been five recorded package tour deaths attributed to carbon monoxide in the UK travel industry since 1988
Recommendations were made in the report, including:
- The Thomas Cook Group should increase significantly the internal resource allocated to health and safety
- It should create a confidential health and safety whistle-blowing line for employees and suppliers
- The company should include a section on carbon monoxide risks and safety within its brochures and website
- There should be a full briefing on carbon monoxide risk for all the company’s personnel at resorts and destinations
- An affordable and portable carbon monoxide monitor should be available for travellers to buy via the company website
Thomas Cook said it would work through the report’s recommendations with a view to implementing them over the next 18 months.
This is an awful case and it’s to be hoped that Thomas Cook will learn from this at last. I’m not sure why a former Sainsbury’s exec was chosen to investigate and write this report. The recommendations don’t appear to include a requirement for TC to obtain reliable evidence of boiler maintenance from all hotels it uses. Ans how is the learning being shared across the travel industry?