A TEENAGER who was among 600 people who had their holiday ruined by a sickness outbreak has told of his experience at the end of a five-year legal battle.

Dominic Spencer, a college student from Saltburn, fell sick after an outbreak of gastric illness at the Holiday Village resort in Sarigerme, Turkey in 2009.

The 19-year-old, then 14, had just returned home with his parents when he began to feel ill. He spent five days in hospital and lost two stone in weight before the symptoms disappeared.

Now the High Court in London has agreed a £1.7m settlement which will see 160 children and 435 adults receive damages of up to £25,000.

The hotel featured on BBC's Watchdog consumer show in November 2009 as numerous guests reported falling ill.

Mr Spencer, who has already received a payout in excess of £3,000, said tonight he was largely happy with the outcome: "I did think I would have got more than I did. For being in hospital for five days, losing two stone, not eating for ten days, being on a drip - it was quite traumatic and people have got close to that having just suffered whiplash."

Mr Spencer said as he was so young at the time, he didnt really take much notice of the state of the resort, but he recalls his mother speaking about its unsanitary conditions.

"I was only 14, so its not something you would really take in, but my mam observed that sometimes bins were overflowing, there were nappies near the pool," he said.

"I ate at the childrens snack bars and can remember on the last night having chicken nuggets and one of the last ones was pink in the middle, but I thought nothing of it and wolfed it down."

Suki Chhokar, a partner in Irwin Mitchell's Travel Litigation team which represented those affected, said: "Clearly, holidaymakers should not have been exposed to conditions like those that prevailed at the Holiday Village in Turkey and the entire legal team at Irwin Mitchell are delighted that justice has finally been done for our clients.

"Many of our clients suffered illnesses that continued after they returned home and some of our clients have still not made a complete recovery more than four years after their original illness commenced."