Benjamin Annetts told the court he arrived in a safety boat to find the Hobie on its side. He told Laura not to panic, but the boat turned turtle and dragged her under.

Annetts said he dived down, but could not free her: "She appeared to be trapped in some other wire, " he told the court.

Judge John Papaioannidis, sitting at The Court of Misdemeanours, in Lefkada, said that Rebecca Morgan, the hotel manager in the resort, and water sports manager, William Hutton, had failed to take sufficient care that Laura Morgan was supervised by an adult. He said assistant manager Kevin Jones was responsible for safety and should have been keeping a closer eye on holidaymakers.

The judge gave all three individuals 18-month jail sentences, suspended for three years.

Matt West, managing director of Sunsail Clubs and Flotillas, told BB Sunsail now makes the RWO quick release trapeze hooks available at all its clubs.

"And as per the new RYA regulations, " he continued, "all our rescue boat crews have knives attached to their lifejackets."

But while newspaper reports quote Laura Morgan's mother, Lynne Morgan, as insisting she will take civil legal action for negligence against Sunsail itself, West said there had been no official approach to the company.