THE distraught family of a plumber who fell into a coma on holiday in Turkey are facing a £50,000 medical bill because he forgot to tick a box when filling out his travel insurance. 

Derrick Haines, 61, fell ill while on holiday in Turkey. He was diagnosed with pneumonia and is now in an induced coma in Anadolu hospital.

His family have been told his hopes for recovery are slim and the family must either keep him on life support at more than £1,000 a day or try to get him home by air ambulance at a cost of £30,000.

Mr Haines, a plumber living on the Isle of Wight, was insured by Global Response but when completing the form online did not check a box stating he had a pre-existing, asbestos-related respiratory issue.

As a result, the company told the family it would not be covering Mr Haines’ medical bills.

The family are now trying to raise at least £40,000 to pay the medical bills and bring Mr Haines back to the UK.

Brother-in-law Mark Sims, 47, said the family was in a ‘heartbreaking situation’. He said: “’In Turkey you’re not allowed to turn the machines off so if we can’t afford to bring him home, we have to wait until his organs give up which could be a week or a year and life support will cost us more than £1,000 a day.

‘An air ambulance to fly him home will cost £30,000.’ Mr Haines’ medical bills so far total £21,000 and are rising by at least £1,000 a day.