Latest news with #Benalmadena
The Sun
09-07-2025
- The Sun
We were slapped with £407 bill & hauled to court for taking kids on hol in term time.. now we're having to pay even MORE
A MUM and dad who took their four children on a term-time holiday because it was quieter for their autistic son have been slapped with a £407 fine. Tammy and Daniel Lambert were hit with the eye-watering fee after they took their son Riley and three other kids to Benalmadena in Spain in April 2024. 1 The couple, from Trent Vale, refused to pay the fine and appealed the decision through the North Staffordshire Justice Centre. However, an unsuccessful plea means they now have to pay out even more. The court heard son Riley had been waiting for an autism assessment at the time the duo pulled their kids out of school during term time. Riley has since been diagnosed with the condition after two years on a waiting list. Tammy told the court: "We had to time meals and go later when it was quieter. We were around the pool in a quieter area and when it was quieter. "We had disability assistance on the plane and getting through the airport. "I sent in photographs of Riley walking through the airport wearing his dressing gown, and with his ear defenders and weighted blanket. "One of the reasons for going then was we were going with a family that understands the struggles we have. "We went with our friend and she has an autistic son. "He was on the waiting list for two years and has had a diagnosis of autism by a specialist - he was diagnosed about six weeks ago. They're also requesting he has an ADHD assessment as well. Drivers must follow the '75-yard' rule when parking in front of their neighbor's home – law is different for driveways "We put our hands up, we did do it the wrong way. The children have good attendance - Riley's is 97 per cent at the moment and the only time they are off is due to illness." The Lamberts conceded their four children were registered absent from school between April 25 and May 3, 2024. Following a £163 victim surcharge and £120 on top of the initial £407 fine, the couple now must fork out £690. A magistrate told the Lamberts: "It's important that children attend school, not only for their education but for their social skills. "If they are not in school they are being deprived of essential skills, notwithstanding the difficulties a disabled child will have. "While we have every sympathy and acknowledge the difficulties, from what you have told us, the difficulties of having a disabled child, the law is very clear. "Parents cannot take a child out of school without the prior authority of the child's headmaster. "You were issued with a fixed-penalty notice. You decided not to pay - that's why you are here." The Sun Online has reached out to the North Staffordshire Justice Centre for comment.
BBC News
09-07-2025
- General
- BBC News
Trent Vale family fined £690 over school term time holiday
A mum and dad who took their four children on a term-time holiday because it was quieter for their autistic son have been fined £ and Daniel Lambert had complained to local media after being fined £480 – £60 per parent per child – following the trip to Benalmadena in Spain in April couple, from Trent Vale, Stoke-on-Trent, refused to pay the fine and instead took their case to North Staffordshire Justice Centre – where they were told to pay the larger court heard that son Riley had been waiting for an autism assessment at the time of the holiday, and had since been diagnosed with the condition after two years on a waiting list. Mrs Lambert told the court they arranged meal times for when it was quieter and were around the pool in a quieter had disability assistance on the plane and getting through the airport, she said, where Riley wore ear defenders and a weighted blanket."One of the reasons for going then was we were going with a family that understands the struggles we have," she added: "We put our hands up, we did do it the wrong way."The children have good attendance – Riley's is 97% at the moment and the only time they are off is due to illness." 'Law is clear' The Lamberts admitted that their four children failed to attend school between 25 April and 3 May were fined a total of £407 and ordered to pay a combined £163 victim surcharge and £120 court granted a request for the Lamberts and their son to be named."It's important that children attend school, not only for their education but for their social skills," the couple were told by magistrates."If they are not in school they are being deprived of essential skills, not withstanding the difficulties a disabled child will have."While we have every sympathy and acknowledge the difficulties, from what you have told us, the difficulties of having a disabled child, the law is very clear."They said parents were not permitted to take a child out of school without the prior authority of the headmaster, and that they were in court due to not paying the fixed-penalty notice. This news has been gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service. Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
The Sun
17-06-2025
- The Sun
Almost 200 holidaymakers locked inside Spanish hotel after cops barricade door as tough new rules for tourists revealed
NEARLY 200 holidaymakers at a Costa del Sol seafront hotel have been blocked from leaving through the front door. Spanish town hall bosses ordered cops to seal off the four-star hotel after discovering it was operating without proper licences. 5 5 5 Tourists at the Vivemar Hotel - previously called the Vistamar - now have to leave through a ground-floor garage. Police sealed the main entrance with steel cables and posted a large notice reading "Precintado" ('Sealed off') at the hotel in Benalmadena Costa, near Torremolinos. When asked if any British or Irish guests were staying there, a receptionist said this evening: 'I'm a bit rushed off my feet at the moment to check where our clients are from but I'd say there would be because we've got a bit of everything. 'There's almost 200 tourists staying here at the moment because we're nearly full. 'The police came this morning and sealed the front door. At the moment the only way in and out of the hotel for staff and guests is the garage car park.' She denied reports that guests were barred from using the swimming pool, insisting it was open as usual. Benalmadena Town Hall could not be reached for comment last night. But spokesperson Raul Campos told local paper Sur that they had instructed police to seal off the front entrance after discovering the hotel wasn't listed in the official regional tourist accommodation register. He said: 'We have asked in the Junta de Andalucia's Tourism Department and they say the company that operates the hotel is not in the official register. 'That means it can't be officially opened as it does not have the proper documentation.' 5 Dad-of-two placed into coma after Turkey holiday as chef, 55, 'caught rare disease from dirty 4-star hotel' Raul said council officials had warned the hotel in late March that cops would take action. Hotel manager Alberto Tusquellas has blamed things on a "red tape" hiccup. He told local press a Spanish firm called Vive Resort Management SL began operating the hotel around a year ago, but their sublease agreement has now been revoked. According to the building's owners, named locally as María Jose García Vargas, the sublease was the subject of ongoing civil and criminal court action. The owners reportedly found out that the company they contracted to run the hotel had sublet it to another firm without their knowledge. The hotel receptionist said: 'The swimming pool is still open and the guests can use it as normal. 'The car park the guests are having to enter and exit the hotel via is a closed building but it's on the ground floor.' The seafront Vivemar Hotel is described online as a 138-room hotel with modern facilities. Online travel websites say it has a 'lush garden' and guests can 'relax by the seasonal outdoor swimming pool'. One writes: 'The on-site restaurant serves Mediterranean cuisine for dinner, complemented by a bar for refreshments. 'A buffet breakfast is available each morning, providing a perfect start to the day.' But a recent guest said in a review: 'The cleaning leaves much to be desired. Old room furniture and broken curtain fall out when you try to open the balcony door. I don't recommend it to my worst enemy.' 5
Daily Mail
17-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Almost 200 holidaymakers 'locked in' seafront Spanish hotel after local police barricaded door amid 'anti-tourism' crackdown
British holidaymakers staying at a four-star hotel in Spain have been prevented from leaving via the front door - after local police said it was not conforming with tourism regulations and locked it up. Photos from today show steel cables and a large notice on the entrance to the Vivemar Hotel on the Costa del Sol saying 'precintado' or 'sealed off' in English. Around 200 guests staying at the hotel in the popular resort of Benalmadena Costa are now having to exit the establishment via a ground-floor garage. It is the latest development in a backlash against tourism in Spain that also saw furious protesters take to the streets of Mallorca and Ibiza at the weekend. A spokesperson for the local town hall said it had instructed police to seal off the front entrance to the hotel after it failed to see it listed in the official tourist accommodation register. Raul Campos told local paper Sur: 'We have asked in the Junta de Andalucia's Tourism Department and they say the company that operates the hotel is not in the official register. 'That means it can't be officially opened as it does not have the proper documentation.' He went on to insist council officials had warned the hotel management about today's police action at the end of March. Manager Alberto Tusquellas, who a hotel receptionist said this evening was in meetings and unavailable, has blamed things on a 'red tape' hiccup. He told local press a Spanish firm called Vive Resort Management SL began operating the hotel around a year ago with a sublease agreement using a previous operator's registration number. However, Mr Tusquellas said this had now been revoked because of a bureaucratic problem they were trying to fix. The hotel operator's version of events has been contradicted by the building's owners who said the sublease was the subject of ongoing civil and criminal court action after they discovered the company they had signed a contract with to run the hotel had agreed to sublet it to another firm without their knowledge. The claim of the owner, identified locally as María Jose García Vargas, could not be independently verified last night. A receptionist at the hotel, which used to be called the Vistamar Hotel, said this evening: 'I'm a bit rushed off my feet at the moment to check where our clients are from but I'd say there would be because we've got a bit of everything. 'There's almost 200 tourists staying here at the moment because we're nearly full. 'The police came this morning and sealed the front door. At the moment the only way in and out of the hotel for staff and guests is the garage car park.' She denied reports guests had been stopped from using the swimming pool, insisting it was open as normal. 'The swimming pool is still open and the guests can use it as normal,' the receptionist said. 'The car park the guests are having to enter and exit the hotel via is a closed building but it's on the ground floor.' The seafront Vivemar Hotel describes itself online as a 138-room hotel with modern facilities. Online travel websites say it has a 'lush garden' and guests can 'relax by the seasonal outdoor swimming pool.' One adds: 'The on-site restaurant serves Mediterranean cuisine for dinner, complemented by a bar for refreshments. 'A buffet breakfast is available each morning, providing a perfect start to the day.' One recent guest writing an online review said: 'The cleaning leaves much to be desired. Old room furniture and broken curtain fall out when you try to open the balcony door. I don't recommend it to my worst enemy.' Another wrote: 'No towels or bed sheets on the first day. It was hard to order even toilet paper. Little cleaning. Bathrooms don't do them daily. The dryer was broken. The reception service is abysmal and the buffet is poor quality. Not recommended.' Benalmadena Town Hall could not be reached last night for comment. It comes after thousands of locals marched through the streets of Mallorca and Ibiza on Sunday to tell Brits to 'go home'. Fed-up locals were seen banging their drums and chanting slogans while marching by tourists enjoying their evening meals. Activists claim more than 30,000 people took to the streets to voice their frustrations about the impact of tourism on the island. Placards held up by marchers read: 'Tourists go home', 'Mallorca is not for sale' and 'Mallorca is not your cash cow… go home.' Footage shows Brits visibly shocked by the demonstrations, while some tourists were seen taking refuge on their accommodation balconies. Other signs read: 'Your vacations, our anxiety.' The action is designed to 'call attention to the social and environmental costs of overtourism.' The protests have been organised by the Southern Europe Network Against Touristification (SET), and are supported by local activist groups. Many locals living in tourist hotspots in Spain believe the industry's model has become too excessive. They say the numbers of visitors continue to increase year by year, creating an increasing demand on local resources.
Irish Times
23-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Orders freezing Claddagh Rings' brother's assets are extended by High Court
A co-owner of the company at the centre of the long-running Claddagh Rings business dispute has had High Court orders restraining him from reducing his and his family's assets below €969,000 pending determination of a dispute over ownership of a villa in Spain extended. Mr Justice Brian Cregan earlier this month granted interim orders freezing the assets of Andrew Fried, his wife Felicity Fried, their children Isabella and Ruben, and a Spanish company, Villas Adelfa SL. Philip Fried, a shareholder with Andrew in Claddagh Jewellers Ltd, had brought the proceedings over what the court heard was 'a new front' in a long-running dispute between the brothers – a row over ownership of a Spanish villa called Villa la Joya in Benalmadena, Malaga, worth €969,000. The brothers had settled a High Court dispute over the Claddagh business in December 2020. READ MORE As part of that settlement, Philip Fried said, the parties agreed to transfer to their mother, Janis, ownership of Villa la Joya where the brothers' parents had lived since 1975. The Spanish firm, Villas Adelfa, owned the property with the two brothers each holding half the shares in the company. It subsequently emerged that Andrew Fried, unbeknown to his brother or other parties to the settlement, had unlawfully transferred in June 2020 his shares in the company to his two minor children, Isabella and Ruben. This purportedly prevented the transfer of the property to their mother, Philip Fried said in an affidavit. Separately, eviction proceedings, at the behest of Andrew Fried, were issued in Spain requiring their parents to leave the villa, it was claimed. A Spanish judge dismissed the application last September and made explicit reference to the December 2020 settlement agreement. An appeal has been lodged against that decision in Spain. The asset-freezing application was brought by Philip Fried, along with his parents Janis and Laszlo Fried, Claddagh Jewellers Ltd, Claddagh Ring Ltd and Irony Galway Properties Unlimited Co. On Friday, Jarlath Ryan SC, for Philip Fried, said there had been no response or meaningful response to the interim orders from Andrew Fried and counsel was now seeking a suite of orders that should remain in place pending trial of the full action. Counsel said Felicity Fried had been in touch to say she did not hold any shares in the Spanish company and was willing to undertake not to evict the Fried parents. However, counsel said this did not go far enough because Mrs Fried is the guardian of the children to whom the shares in the Spanish company had been transferred which means she could transfer the shares if she wanted. Mr Justice Cregan said he was satisfied to grant the orders sought by Mr Ryan pending trial of the full case. He continued the order restraining the defendants from reducing their assets below €969,000. He also ordered that the assets in the Fried companies should not be reduced in accordance with the 2020 settlement. He further restrained, pending further order, the transfer of company assets, including assets held on trust for the defendants' minor children. He ordered the defendants to disclose to the plaintiffs all worldwide bank accounts in which they have a beneficial or legal interest.
