On 6 September 1999, the claimant's husband contracted with the defendant to organise a package holiday comprising a sea cruise on the Carousel, departing from Palma, including flights to and from Bristol. On 30 September 1999, the claimant was injured when she slipped on water in a lift on the vessel. She claimed damages under the Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992 (UK) for personal injury and consequential losses, including pain, suffering, loss of amenity, and enjoyment of the holiday, pursuant to reg 15. Regulation 15(3) allowed contracts to limit compensation in accordance with international conventions, while regs 15(b) and 15(2) imposed liability for failure to perform contractual obligations.

The claimant issued her claim on 25 September 2002. The defendant contended that the Athens Convention 1974, incorporated into domestic law by s 183 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 (UK), applied. Articles 14 and 16 of the Convention governed claims for passenger injury or luggage loss, with art 16 imposing a two-year limitation from disembarkation. The claimant admitted that her contract constituted a contract of carriage under art 1.2; that the defendant was a carrier under art 1.1; and that the carriage was by sea on a seagoing vessel.

The claimant nevertheless argued that the Convention applied only if expressly referenced in the contract of carriage, and that her claim was statutory, not for personal injury, invoking the three-year limitation under the Limitation Act 1980 (UK).

Held: Claim dismissed.

The preliminary issue is whether Mrs Norfolk's personal injury claim, arising from a fall on a cruise ship forming part of a package holiday, is time-barred by art 16 of the Athens Convention. The Convention provides a uniform international legal framework governing contracts of carriage by sea, including passenger rights and liability limits.

The parties admit that the contract constitutes a contract of carriage under art 1.2; that the defendants are carriers under art 1.1; that the cruise involves international carriage by sea; and that the vessel is sea-going. These admissions establish that the Athens Convention applies to the claim.

The two-year limitation period in art 16 is decisive, and no contractual reference to the Convention is necessary for it to apply.