THE hotel in Egypt where a Burnley couple fell fatally ill has been described as a ‘hotspot’ for illness by a solicitor.

A Lancashire Telegraph investigation has revealed that within the last six months, Thomas Cook has been taken to court by Your Holiday Claims who were representing a client who had recently returned from the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in Hurghada.

Solicitors at the company say that the holidaymaker had become ‘seriously ill’ after a stay in the hotel, where John and Susan Cooper, from Burnley, died on Tuesday.

Craig Bibby, a solicitor with the holiday illness team, said the company had dealt with a ‘plethora’ of claims against the hotel in recent years.

He said: “This particular hotel is known among staff because we see so many claims coming in against them.

“I can say that in the last six months we have been in court representing a client who had fallen seriously ill during a stay at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel.

“Numerous people have been in touch with us over the years to seek legal assistance.

“A significant number of complaints have been made - you could say it’s a bit of a hotspot for claims.”

The same company has also spoken out about a client who was awarded £2,200 after a stay in the hotel in 2015.

Jennifer Masters, from Leeds, travelled to the hotel to celebrate her husband’s 50th birthday, however the celebrations were brought to a halt as Mrs Masters fell ill suffering symptoms of severe diarrhoea and crippling stomach cramps.

Speaking at the time, claims expert Tracy Stansfield warned that Thomas Cook needed to take immediate action to ‘ensure more guests would not be affected’.

Thomas Cook evacuated all guests from the hotel on Thursday evening after reports suggested that a number of guests had recently fallen unwell.

The exact circumstances surrounding Mr and Mrs Cooper’s deaths are yet to be established and the travel company said they had evacuated the hotel as a ‘precautionary measure’.

A spokesperson for Thomas Cook said: “We continue to work closely with the hotel and are supporting the authorities with their investigations.

"The Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel was last audited by Thomas Cook in late July 2018 and received an overall score of 96 per cent.”

They added: "We are aware that a number of customers have come forward to say they have experienced illness while staying at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in Hurghada, Egypt.

"We are very sorry for those customers whose holidays have been spoiled. We take all illness very seriously and we will continue to investigate any outstanding cases."