Family devastated as insurance refuses to pay £38K hospital bill when dad fell ill on holiday

A holidaymaker who fell ill during a trip to Greece is now facing a staggering £38,000 medical bill. Gwyn Elward was just two days into his Zante holiday with Rosalind, his wife of 52 years, when he felt so "shattered" he couldn't get out of bed.

Rosalind, 74, insisted he see a doctor and after a few checks, an ambulance was called for Gwyn, 73, to be taken to the local hospital. Upon arrival, Rosalind simply had to show Gwyn's UK Global Health Insurance Card, which allows for necessary state healthcare in the European area.

Gwyn, from Pencoed, spent four days at that hospital before doctors recommended he receive more specialist treatment at a hospital in Athens. They arrived in the middle of the night and Gwyn was immediately taken to intensive care. However, Rosalind signed something she believed was necessary for his admission. She was then asked for a £5,000 deposit.

"I said I'm insured. He said no, as a deposit, so I just paid it. He was in that hospital then for nearly two weeks. They kept onto me they wanted paying, they wanted 30 grand. I said I haven't got 30 grand, I was in a right state," reports .

Rosalind's family arranged for her to stay in a hotel close to the hospital, and she made daily visits to see Gwyn. During his time in intensive care, she was only permitted 15 minutes per day in his room, fully masked and gowned.

It was there that Gwyn voiced his worries about the air conditioning unit to Rosalind. "When we got back home then, he was in hospital here, and they detected legionella," Rosalind recounted.

She is convinced that the intensive care room was the only possible place where he could have contracted Legionnaires' disease, which is caused by inhaling small water droplets contaminated with bacteria.

Environmental health officers visited Gwyn to take samples after their return on September 14, and the couple are expecting to learn more about the source of the infection soon. The great-grandfather had spent four days in a local hospital in Zante and an additional 13 days in an Athens hospital, including three days in intensive care for heart treatment, which is now thankfully under control.

Upon returning home, Gwyn was taken to the Hospital in Bridgend, where, according to Rosalind, he was diagnosed with pneumonia and Legionnaires' disease. After receiving four blood transfusions, he was discharged from the hospital last week.

Rosalind is currently shouldering the stress of covering a hefty medical bill after her travel insurance allegedly refused to foot the costs. "They sent me a letter with a breakdown of what we're going to pay, it is £30,000 for the hospital, then it's four doctors at £1,000 something to each."

In response to the overwhelming strain, a considerate friend has created a GoFundMe page to alleviate some of the pressure.

You can contribute to the cause here. Rosalind expressed that the generosity shown by people who have donated to the fundraiser was "incredibly kind" and conveyed both her and Gwyn's heartfelt gratitude for the help and support received.