A mother has issued an urgent warning after being left with a £28,000 bill following a horrific accident while on holiday. Diane Steadman and her partner Mick Raferty were enjoying a break on the Greek island of Skiathos when they were struck by a car while riding quadbikes.
Crash on final days of holiday
The couple, who were in the final days of their £2,200 holiday, had been travelling between beaches on the hired vehicles when the incident occurred on September 11. Following the collision, which the pair claim was caused by a car hitting them from behind, both were thrown from the road.
While Mick walked away with cuts and bruising, Diane, from Studley, Warwickshire, suffered two fractured vertebrae in her spine and genuinely feared she was "going to die".
Insurance gap and £28,000 loan
Given the severity of her injuries, Diane and Mick assumed their travel insurance would cover the costs. However, they were devastated to discover it did not, leaving Diane, a carer and mother-of-two, unable to meet the £40,000 cost of surgery. She was subsequently forced to take out a £28,000 loan to fund an air ambulance trip home on September 30.
Mick warned: "Check your insurance before you rent a quad bike. We were mistaken in thinking insurance covered quad bikes too."
Waking up on the road
Recounting the initial incident, which saw her airlifted by helicopter to mainland Greece after first being taken by ambulance, Diane said: "All I remember is waking up on the road."
"He [the car driver] wasn't watching the road and didn't have time to slow down. I was in and out of consciousness. I didn't have the energy to speak to anybody when I woke up. I tried to be strong, but I'm so frightened, I feel like I'm going to die."
Despite remaining in a state of uncertainty while awaiting surgery on her back, Diane has made it abundantly clear that she has no intention of travelling abroad ever again. She added: "It's just been one thing after another, I will not be going abroad again, no way. Mick has been brave and tried to put a smile on my face. I'm scared of the operation, everyone is telling me it's going to be okay."
GoFundMe launched
In addition to urging fellow travellers to carefully review their travel insurance policies before heading off on holiday, Mick has launched a GoFundMe page to help ease the financial strain caused by the crash.
Insurers frequently remind British holidaymakers, particularly during peak summer periods, of the importance of ensuring they have sufficient cover in place to protect against unexpected events.
