A British grandfather is facing a nightmare scenario, trapped in a Croatian hospital with severe injuries after his travel insurance was declared invalid.
A Holiday Turned Horror
Brian Ackroyd, 65, from Lancashire, suffered a catastrophic fall on the very first day of his holiday in Dubrovnik. The incident occurred on October 27 while he was walking on a public pathway in the village of Cavtat.
His son, Richard, described the terrifying accident: "He must have lost his footing or balance and went backwards but headfirst into a crevice. He smashed his head off one rock and ended upside down trapped with his head twisted, just bleeding out."
Severe Injuries and Stalled Treatment
Brian was rushed to a local hospital by emergency services. The fall left him with a fractured neck, a fractured skull, and multiple bleeds on the brain.
After spending time in intensive care, he was moved to a neurology ward at Dubrovnik General Hospital. However, his treatment has now stopped. Doctors have informed the family they can do no more for him and that he requires intensive rehabilitation in the UK.
Brian is currently unable to walk, has nerve damage, and cannot use his hands. His family says he is deteriorating daily, left to stare at the ceiling in a hospital that cannot provide the specialist care he desperately needs.
Insurance Crisis Leaves Family Desperate
The situation escalated when Brian's travel insurance provider, Admiral, voided his policy. The company stated he had failed to disclose that he had Type 2 diabetes and a recent visit to his GP.
His son explained the likely error: "Being 65 it seems he wasn't the best with inputting his details and medical records on a computer online. My father is not very good with computers."
Despite the family's insistence that the fall was a simple accident unrelated to his health conditions, underwriters deemed the policy null and void.
Admiral initially agreed to a medical evacuation but reversed the decision after receiving his GP report. The family claims the insurer has offered a £5,000 goodwill payment, but this falls drastically short of the estimated £35,000 to £40,000 needed for a specialised medical flight home.
Richard expressed the family's frustration, stating, "He's 65, worked all his life and has saved up all year for a holiday and all they're thinking is he's trying to defraud them? I think he would have rather not have fallen over and broken his neck."
A Race Against Time to Get Home
Brian's partner, Debbie, revealed that savings he had were used up after he had to retire from his job as a truck driver due to a prostate cancer diagnosis.
With the insurance company refusing to pay for repatriation, the family has turned to the public for help. A GoFundMe page has raised over £9,000 so far, but the clock is ticking to get Brian the care he needs.
A spokesperson for Admiral said: "We never take the decision to refuse a claim lightly... As a gesture of goodwill, we have made an offer of an ex-gratia payment to assist with costs and his return home." They added that the undisclosed conditions were not the sole reason for the claim being declined.
