An inquest into the death of a solicitor has heard that he might have survived a skiing accident had holiday representatives at the resort taken more notice of a call to them from his wife when he did not return for lunch.

London’s Evening Standard newspaper reports that the body of father-of-four Stephen Gladman – known by his middle name of Martin – lay trapped beneath snow for 16 hours.

Mr Gladman – from Penn in Buckinghamshire – was on the third day of a skiing holiday in France when he died in February 2007.

He was described at the inquest in Amersham as a ‘competent’ skier – and it is thought he was taking a lesser used path to avoid ski schools on the day he died, while his wife Marion and their sons took lessons.

Mrs Gladman raised the alarm 90 minutes after her husband failed to meet them for lunch and could not be contacted by mobile phone. However, the Thomson Ski holiday representative she contacted was drinking in a bar at another resort – and other representatives for the La Plagne resort were all on leave that day.

The representative she spoke to – named as Laura – told Mrs Gladman that her husband had probably lost his mobile phone, or was drinking in a bar – or was ‘stuck’ on the other side of the mountain. She advised her to call her again at 4.30pm if there was still no word from him. She also said that Mrs Gladman should not let the matter ‘spoil her day’ and advised her to ‘go out’ with her four sons – now aged 10, 13, 15 and 18 – and ‘not waste’ their afternoon.

Mrs Gladman – a trained nurse – called the representative back at 4.30pm as instructed and on this occasion the piste patrol was alerted. They said, however, that they had no reports of injuries on the slopes that day – and the slopes could not be searched until they had closed for the day.

Mr Gladman’s body was found in a hole at 2.30am the next morning, near Les Colosses where he had been skiing. His face and upper torso were covered with snow. Pathologists found that his fingertips were blue, but could not ascertain whether he had died from hypothermia or suffocation – or both. It is thought he ventured off piste in poor visibility and fell into the hole, causing a mini avalanche which covered him.

The coroner Richard Hulett recorded a verdict of accidental death.

Mrs Gladman is now taking legal action against the parent company of Thomson Ski, Tui UK.

The family’s legal representative said:

‘Our concern about the incident is that when Mrs Gladman raised the alarm that her husband was missing, she wasn't taken seriously. The family's frustrations lie in that, had they acted, he might have been saved.’

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