As we enter October and the seasons change, so the UK travel sector enters its peak booking period for the winter sports holiday market.
Winter sports holidays remain one of the most popular sectors for the UK outbound travel market, offering customers opportunities to ski, snowboard and participate in other mountain-based activities across Europe and beyond.
However, these holidays can present a range of significant health and safety risks that tour operators must manage carefully. Failure to do so can result in customer injuries, reputational damage, legal claims, regulatory scrutiny, financial loss and increased insurance premiums.
By adopting robust risk management practices, tour operators can reduce the likelihood and impact of incidents and reduce potential financial outlay, whilst fulfilling their duty of care to customers.
Key Health and Safety Risks
Skiing and Snowboarding Injuries
An obvious risk associated with winter sports holidays and often the most common claim or complaint, are injuries caused to customers whilst participating in the sports activities forming part of the package.
Skiing and snowboarding involve high speeds, challenging terrain and varying weather conditions, all of which can all lead to accidents.
Claims and complaints often arise from allegations of incorrect fitting and defective equipment provided by suppliers, including wrongly sized ski boots, incorrect DIN settings and defective bindings.
Whilst also incorrectly assessing and recording a skier’s ability and experience.
Common injuries include fractures, dislocations, ligament damage, head injuries and spinal injuries. Less experienced participants are particularly vulnerable, although experienced skiers can also be injured due to collisions, fatigue or overconfidence.
Tour operators may face liability claims if customers believe insufficient information, guidance or safety arrangements caused or contributed towards an accident.
Adverse Weather Conditions
Mountain weather can change rapidly, creating hazardous conditions, including heavy snowfall, blizzards, poor visibility, strong winds and ice. These conditions can increase the risk of accidents on the slopes and disrupt transport arrangements.
Severe weather may lead to lift closures, road closures, cancelled flights or stranded customers, creating both safety concerns and significant operational challenges for tour operators.
With climate change and the unpredictable nature of weather, not only between seasons but also between countries and regions within those countries, a pro-active, rapid response approach to weather related incidents will become of increasing importance.
Avalanche Risks
Although most customers use marked and controlled ski areas, some may venture off-piste or participate in guided excursions. Avalanches remain a serious hazard in many mountain regions and have the potential to cause multiple fatalities, particularly as changing weather patterns contribute towards unstable terrain.
Even where third-party providers organise activities, tour operators may face questions regarding the adequacy of information provided to customers about the dangers of off-piste skiing and the importance of using appropriately qualified guides.
Altitude-Related Illnesses
Some winter resorts are located at elevations where visitors can experience altitude sickness, particularly those with relevant pre-existing medical conditions. Symptoms may include headaches, dizziness, nausea and breathing difficulties. In rare cases, severe altitude illness can become life-threatening.
Providing guidance and risk awareness information to customers whilst requiring, as part of the booking process, the provision of medical declarations by those customers may help to prevent claims arising further down the line.
Transport Risks
Winter travel introduces additional transport hazards. Snow-covered roads, ice and poor visibility increase the likelihood of vehicle accidents involving transfers, coaches and hired vehicles. Delays and disruption can also lead to customer welfare issues, particularly where customers become stranded for extended periods, potentially missing flights and onward transport connections.
Accommodation and Resort Safety
Hotels, chalets and apartments present their own health and safety risks. Hazards may include fire safety deficiencies, inadequate maintenance, slips and trips, unsafe balconies, hot tub hygiene, faulty electrical equipment. Or poor food hygiene standards, particularly when food is included as part of hosted chalet accommodation.
As part of a package holiday, tour operators may bear responsibility for the performance of services included within that package, making effective supplier selection, monitoring and oversight vitally important.
Risks Reduction Measures
Comprehensive Risk Assessments
A thorough risk assessment process should underpin all winter sports programmes. Operators should identify foreseeable hazards associated with transport, accommodation, skiing activities and resort infrastructure. Assessments should be reviewed regularly and updated in response to emerging risks, weather patterns or operational changes.
Assessments should ideally be conducted in person and the assessor be available to defend their assessment, if challenged in the future.
Deficiencies should be acted upon, written evidence of remedial action recorded for future reference and monitored to ensure they do not reoccur.
Vet and Monitor Suppliers
Careful supplier selection is critical. Hotels, transport providers, ski schools, ski instructors and excursion operators should be assessed against recognised safety standards and to ensure they are qualified in their area of expertise. Regular audits, documented inspections and contractual safety requirements can help ensure suppliers maintain appropriate standards.
Particular attention should be given to fire safety, the provision of carbon monoxide monitors in chalets, maintenance arrangements, staff competence and emergency procedures, ensuring not only that all local laws and regulations have been complied with but that suppliers are in possession of all relevant operating and safety licences.
Chalet staff should have received adequate training and be appropriately qualified in the services they are to deliver to guests. This is particularly important where food is included as part of a package and good standards of hygiene need to be observed and maintained.
Supplier agreements should be in place between operators and suppliers, setting out obligations and responsibilities. Together with appropriate remedies for operators should a supplier fall short.
Contractual indemnities should be included providing operators with a route to financial recourse in the event of claims by customers.
Provide Clear Customer Information
Many incidents can be prevented through effective communication. Customers should receive detailed information before departure covering:
- Skiing and snowboarding risks.
- The importance of travel insurance.
- Appropriate clothing and protective equipment.
- Avalanche awareness.
- Altitude-related health issues.
- Local emergency procedures.
- Weather-related hazards.
Safety briefings on arrival can reinforce these messages.
Use Only Qualified Instructors
Beginners and novices should be encouraged to use professional ski and snowboard instructors. Operators can partner with accredited ski schools and promote lessons as part of the holiday package. Better training often leads to safer behaviours on the slopes and fewer accidents.
Maintain Robust Emergency Response Plans
Tour operators should have clear procedures for managing injuries, hospital admissions, missing persons, severe weather incidents and mass casualty events. Resort representatives should be trained to respond quickly and coordinate with local emergency services, insurers and customer families when required.
Tour operator insurance can provide Crisis Response Cover and where and operator has insufficient internal resource, obtaining such cover can provide valuable external support.
Monitor Weather and Avalanche Conditions
Real-time monitoring of weather forecasts and avalanche warnings can help operators provide timely advice to customers. Where conditions become particularly hazardous, excursions or activities should be modified, postponed or cancelled.
Ensure Adequate Insurance and Legal Compliance
Operators should maintain comprehensive liability insurance and ensure compliance with not only with the Package Travel Regulations, where packages are being supplied. But importantly with local health and safety legislation and licensing regimes.
Ensuring as part of your booking conditions that customers are obliged to have in place their own winter sports travel insurance is vital as are regular reviews of booking conditions and supplier agreements. Whilst ensuring that all suppliers have their own public liability insurance with adequate levels of cover.
Foster a Strong Safety Culture
Ultimately, effective risk management depends on organisational culture. Management should promote safety as a core business priority rather than a compliance exercise. Staff training, incident reporting, lessons learned reviews and continual improvement programmes all contribute to safer holiday experiences.
In summary, winter sports holidays offer exciting experiences but expose tour operators to a unique range of health and safety risks. By implementing the steps above these risks can be significantly reduced.
A proactive approach not only protects customers but also strengthens business resilience, enhances reputation and supports the long-term success of your business.
For further assistance and for details of Travel Risk Professionals Advice and Support Services please contact Alan Pattison at alan.pattison@jensten.co.uk or Lee Hills at lee.hills@jensten.co.uk