GERMAN WOMAN SUES UK TRAVEL FIRM FOR £12M OVER CAMBODIA BOAT CAPSIZE

Annika Kreten, a German government worker, is suing Transforma Travel Group, the London-based company behind "The Dragon Trip" backpacking tours, for £12 million after a boat she was travelling on capsized in Cambodia. Kreten has brought the case to London's High Court over an accident on the River Kampot during a "sunset BBQ cruise" in November 2022. Her lawyers say the two-storey boat took on water and overbalanced as passengers climbed onto its roof to jump into the river, trapping her inside. They say she lost consciousness and suffered drowning injuries after water filled her lungs, in an accident reported to have caused multiple casualties.

Kreten had been taking part in Transforma's 31-day "Dragon Trip" tour of south-east Asia, which costs around £2,000 and covers Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia. Lawyers acting for Transforma have admitted full liability for the capsizing but are disputing the extent of Kreten's injuries and the scale of damages she is claiming. Transforma was founded in 2011 by Ramsey Kerr, who is based in Shropshire, after a backpacking trip through China during his gap year inspired him to set up the company. The tour's publicity material describes it as an "adventurous, authentic, and affordable" backpacking experience.

With liability admitted, the High Court is expected to determine the level of damages owed, as the two sides remain in dispute over the extent of Kreten's injuries. Kreten's lawyers maintain the accident has left her unable to work or live independently, a claim Transforma's legal team disputes. The case centres on an operator marketing budget backpacking tours across south-east Asia. No date for a further hearing has been confirmed in the court papers reported so far.