Robert Atkinson fell ill while on holiday with his wife and says his insurance claim has been declined
Robert Atkinson fell ill while on holiday with his wife and says his insurance claim has been declined
A pub landlord left paralysed after collapsing in Benidorm says he is stranded in the popular resort as his insurance claim was declined. Robert Atkinson, 67, fell ill while on holiday with his wife, Carol, 64, and was taken to hospital.
But he claims he is now stuck as his insurance company refuses to pay his £60k medical fees – because he enjoyed a glass of wine with his dinner.
Mr Atkinson, who runs the King William pub in York, collapsed as he was finishing a meal and woke up the following morning unable to move. Now his daughter Amanda Liddle says her parents have been “left alone” to pay for the medical bills after insurance company Zurich “declined” to pay due to factors the couple had “no idea” about.
She says the company is refusing to pay because her dad was unwittingly taken to a private hospital, had not disclosed all the medication he was on and because he had alcohol in his blood on admittance.
Zurich denies Mr Atkinson’s claim was refused due to alcohol, saying crucial medical information was not disclosed when the grandad initially purchased his travel policy resulting in him being underinsured.
Amanda continued: “This situation has just made everything 100 times worse. You never expect to go on holiday and fall ill – you expect to be looked after and not caught out for clauses you didn’t know about.”
Robert had been enjoying a glass of red wine alongside his last meal at the popular holiday destination with his wife Carol when his legs collapsed from underneath him.
He managed to get himself to bed with assistance from a mobility scooter and Carol, but when he woke up the next day he was paralysed from the waist down.
Robert was taken to a local hospital where doctors discovered a small tumour in his lower back that had weakened his spine causing a vertebra to collapse which left him unable to use his legs.
The grandad underwent emergency spinal surgery. It was a day later he received the news that his travel insurance company Zurich, which Robert pays an annual subscription to, would not be covering the costs of the treatment he had received.
Amanda claims the company “abused loopholes” to save itself from forking out and help the family in need. These included the fast he was taken to a private hospital, when the firm only covers expenses occurred in state infirmaries – and that traces of alcohol were found in his blood.
She said: “It is just shocking and we feel we have been taken advantage of. My mum was in absolute shock when he was being taken to hospital and she had plenty of other things on her mind other than which one he was being taken too.
“It’s unfair to expect her to know which hospitals were private and which weren’t – she can’t speak the language and has been using a translation app to speak to the nurses.”
She continued: “I mean who goes on holiday to not have a drink? It is ridiculous – it’s not as if the wine he had drank had caused his injury.” She claims Zurich “null and voided” Rob’s claim upon finding the alcohol in his system.
She also claims Zurich said her father had not updated his recent medical history, adding: “They expected him to have included any medication he had taken in the past year which included simple stuff like paracetamol and ibuprofen.
“It is really frustrating as I don’t think many people including us realised the importance of such small details.”
She said her dad has filed a complaint to the insurance company which the hopes of getting some of his treatment paid for. But paying off the debt they now owe will be “tricky”.
She said: “I have set up a GoFundMe for him there has also been lots of support pouring in with donations. Rob’s favourite rugby team Acorn have also made a generous donation.
“We will also be running a fun Easter event at Rob’s pub this Easter weekend to hopefully raise some more money for him.” She said her dad is “in a lot of pain” and is “frustrated and upset” about what happened adding he just “wants to get back home”.
Mr Atkinson is currently waiting for the all-clear so he can travel home via a private medical transfer as he is unable to travel back via a commercial flight.
This may include him being driven in an ambulance over 1000 miles and then traveling by boat across The Channel back to the UK if a private plane can’t be provided for him.
Amanda said: “We just need him back in the UK so he can be treated properly and so we can all understand what is going on. We haven’t been told anything really about his tumour yet. Once he is home then we can all start to recover.”
A Zurich spokesperson said: “We are aware of Mr. Atkinson’s claim and are sorry to hear about his medical situation following his fall in Benidorm. As an insurance provider, we always ask for and rely on customers providing accurate information.
“In this instance, crucial medical information was not disclosed at the time of purchasing the policy resulting in Mr Atkinson being significantly underinsured. Had accurate information been provided when taking out the policy, Mr Atkinson would have been offered a different policy with more appropriate cover.
“We have not declined the claim based on alcohol consumption, and we are providing support within the scope of the purchased insurance coverage.”
