A travel company failed to tell a grandmothers family that she had died during her holiday – forcing them to phone the firm and ask where she was.
Yun Kiu Law, 65, was in Switzerland on a coach trip with other elderly tourists when she became confused and tried to cross a motorway on foot.
The mother-of-two was then hit by a car as she reached the third lane and died from multiple injuries at the scene, Stockport Coroners Court heard.
But her family didnt hear the news of Ms Laws death until days later, having called travel company Omega to ask where she was.
She should have been back by the 4th or the 5th of January. I started ringing her number – she didnt answer, her daughter Alison Law told the court.
I thought she had gone shopping, I kept calling all day. On the 8th January I called the travel agency to see whats going on.
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They were just saying they couldnt let me know what had happened. They said the police were saying they couldnt say anything until they spoke to us.
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Alison said that she and her husband then panicked and began asking at police stations around Manchester for help.
The couple even spoke to the Swiss Embassy in London but still couldnt get any information, the court heard.
Eventually, a police coroners officer got in touch with them and delivered the tragic news.
We think Omega breached their care of duty, we think a lot more should have been done, Alison told the inquest.
We dont want this to happen to anyone else – especially, elderly single ladies travelling by themselves.
I know my mum, she thinks before she does things. She thinks twice. People get mixed up there and end up on the wrong side of the road.
Ms Law, a widow who lived alone in a flat in Withington, Manchester, was described as strong-minded by her daughter.
She had raised her children largely on her own, after her husband died while she was in her 30s.
Assisting the coroner for Greater Manchester Police, officer Alison Catlow told the court she had been sent CCTV of the incident by authorities in Switzerland.
She told the inquest it showed Ms Law climbing over the barrier and hard shoulder before trying to cross the road.
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A post-mortem exam was performed in both Switzerland and the UK and a pathologist found that the cause of death was multiple serious injuries consistent being struck by a car.
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Coroner Alison Mutch asked if Ms Laws family werent notified for quite some time.
Yes, communication from Omega was very slow coming through, officer Catlow said.
The coroner recorded a short form verdict that Ms Law died as a result of a collision with road traffic.
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You and your sister must have thought she was going to be safe, travelling in a group with the support of a travel agency, she told Alison.
You didnt know anything was wrong. That must have been very difficult trying to find out what had happened to your mum.
You felt let down by the travel agency who hadnt told you – you had to go to Greater Manchester Police to try and find out.
I can only imagine how distressing this must have been for you and your family. That poor communication has been a feature of what has happened since your mum died.
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