SEOUL, Korea (12 Oct 2007) -- Seoul Central District Court ruled Friday that a travel agency is obliged to take 30 percent responsibility for a customer's death while on scuba diving trip. It also ruled that the company should pay 140 million won (US$150,000) to the victim's family in compensation. In 2006, a Korean male who was on his honeymoon was found dead on a beach _ drowned after swimming out of his depth. Witnesses testified that the male did not participate in the scuba diving because of his poor swimming ability. He was allegedly left behind alone on the shallow beach. The court ruling said: ``The travel agency is in charge of guaranteeing the safety of customers including those who give up joining the scheduled program. The company should shoulder the responsibility and compensate for the death.'' But the court also agreed that the deceased had been partially responsible for behaving carelessly by not remaining in a safe place despite knowing his incompetence at swimming. | | A travel agency has been held legally responsible and fined $150,000 for the death of a scuba diving trip customer. The ruling that a travel agency is responsible for an accident caused by a customer's carelessness once again stresses that customer safety is a matter of top priority in tourism, experts said. SOURCE - Korea TimesSCUBA FORUMDISCUSS THIS TOPIC - Dive in and have your say at Scuba Forum |
