Georgina
Mortimer booked the 'dream holiday' to St Lucia with Girls for Sail, a
company accredited by the Royal Yacht Association, but says she was
attacked in the bedroom of her shared villa within hours of arriving.
Now, in a
potential landmark case, the 45-year-old is taking action against the holiday company
and villa owner for negligence, paving the way for other tourists to sue
private property renters.
Ms Mortimer, who has bravely waived her right to anonymity, said: 'I woke up to find myself being strangled and raped by this total stranger. I was terrified. I honestly thought I was going to die.
'I'd gone on
a women only holiday to learn to sail believing I would be
safe.
'I am
devastated by what happened and I am going to do what I can to stop any other
woman going through this.
'I am shocked a company, which claims to empower women by helping them learn to sail without men has treated a rape victim so badly. My life has been turned upside down. I have horrendous flashbacks and feel traumatised.'
On their
website Girls for Sail say they are the 'only sailing school for ladies' and
they 'take care of each other and maintain a safe environment'.
It was on
the second night of 45-year-old Ms Mortimer's £2,000 Girls for Sail holiday in
February 2016 that her nightmare began.
She was staying in one of the four bedrooms at Summer Breeze villa, a RYA accredited sailing training centre, in the hills above Rodney Bay Marina.
Ms
Mortimer said: 'I was not given a key for my bedroom door but two
instructors were also staying there and I understood the front door would be
locked each night.
'But I woke
to find a monster pinning me down in my bed attacking me, I thought I was going
to be murdered.
'The hand on my throat pressed down so hard I thought I was going to pass out. I could hardly breathe let alone scream.
'I thought
of my children and was determined not to die. I lay as quiet as possible
because I felt any struggling on my part could anger him enough to kill me.
'It was
around fifteen minutes of hell before someone knocked at the door and my
attacker fled.'
The police
were called and Ms Mortimer went to hospital to be treated for possible
sexually transmitted diseases, HIV bruising and shock.
One of her
best friends had planned to join her that day for the remainder of the holiday but
was 'horrified' when she saw Ms Mortimer.
Fighting
back tears Ms Mortimer said: 'Girls for Sail even advised me not to tell
other women arriving alone what had happened in case it upset them.
'I was in shock. Looking back I should have said something. There was no sign of a break in, it appears he walked straight into the villa but I was made to feel as though I'd done something wrong.
'I couldn't
stay in the villa but they said they'd pay for us to stay in a hotel for one
night, but not two.
'I was
traumatised, I couldn't cope being there. Nobody had bothered to contact the
British Consulate for me so I did that myself and they organised an emergency
flight home for me.'
Back in Hertfordshire the Accident and Emergency doctor was also horrified to discover there had been similar sexual assaults and rapes in St Lucia – including an attempted rape in a house a few miles away from her villa - but says there were no warnings issued to take additional care.
She said: 'I
started to get angry. I had gone on a women only holiday, you
have an expectation of safety.
'Because of
the other incidents they should surely have upped security therefore the villa
should have had CCTV and a security guard on duty. They should have at least
had self locking doors and told us to be vigilent.'
Letters of
complaint were sent to the company and Ms Mortimer expected a refund -
instead three weeks later she received a marketing newsletter.
She said: 'I
complained again. This time I got an email saying they were offering me a massage and manicure at
my local beauty salon.
'They'd
described it as a little 'treat' for me and hoped I found it 'enjoyable'. As if
that would cheer me up. I had been raped under their guard. I was
disgusted, insulted.'
Now she has
employed lawyers to sue both organisations for negligence, claiming Girls for
Sail also failed to report the attack to the RYA.
Her
solicitor Vidisha Joshi, Partner and Head of Personal Injury, Hodge, Jones and
Allen Solicitors in London, said: 'This is a professional woman who was
attacked in her own bed whilst away on holiday. Tour operators, hotel
owners and others in the holiday business have a duty of care to
protect their customers.'
A
spokesperson for the Royal Yachting Association later said: 'The incident did
not take place during an RYA accredited training course and the RYA had no
involvement in the ownership or provision of the holiday accommodation
in which the incident took place.'
Annie O
Sullivan, owner of Summer Breeze villa and Girls for Sail said: 'We have been a Trip Advisor
recommended 4.5 star villa since 2012 and strenuously deny the claims.'
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