Balcony fall dad's Leicester family in plea for cash help
The family of a father of six who is fighting for his life in a Tunisian hospital after falling from a hotel balcony are trying to raise £22,000 to fly him home.
Karl Nethercot suffered serious head and chest injuries when he fell from the second-floor balcony of the Abou Sofiane hotel, in Port El Kantaoui, on Tuesday.
Mr Nethercot, who was born in Leicester and lived in the city until about a year ago, is on a life-support machine in Sahloul Hospital, in Sousse.
His family said his insurance company would not pay his medical bills or for an air ambulance to fly him home as he had drunk alcohol when the accident happened.
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The 33-year-old's family are trying to raise the money to bring him back to the UK.
His sister, Mandi Dann, 38, of Newfoundpool, Leicester, flew out to see her brother with their parents Dawn and John, who live in the West End of the city, on Wednesday.
She said: "He fell two floors and now he's in hospital on a life-support machine.
"We've been over to try to sort things out, but it's not looking good at the moment.
"We'll know more after he's had a brain scan."
"The insurance firm said they weren't going to cover it because my brother had had a drink."
Her partner, Stewart Smith, 36, said: "Karl's mum and dad aren't coping very well and we're trying to comfort them and give them as much support as we can.
"We need to raise £22,000 for an air ambulance to fly him home and to pay the hospital fees which are growing every day.
"They won't release him until all the bills are paid.
"The incident is under police investigation and until that has been appraised we wouldn't like to speculate on what happened."
Karl was on a package holiday with his partner, Emma Huszarik, and children Ethan, 20 months, and Kiera, nine months, plus members of his partner's family.
Mr Nethercot's sister-in-law Samantha Davison, 24, of Nottingham, said: "Karl is such a kind man. He would do anything for anyone."
The insurance with Homecare was provided free when Ms Huszarik took out an account with Santander bank.
A spokeswoman for Santander said: "Homecare and Santander sympathise with the difficult situation Miss Huszarik and her family face.
"However, the claim has been declined because Mr Nethercot's actions put him in breach of the terms and conditions and therefore invalidated his cover.
"Homecare has offered to support Mr Nethercot on an uninsured basis and has provided assistance and guidance wherever possible."
The family has organised an evening at West End Working Men's Club in Braunstone Avenue, Braunstone, on November 22 to raise money.
Donations can be made out to account number 35349490, sort code 09-01-28 at Santander, in Narborough Road.
Comments
by wagga01
Wednesday, October 10 2012, 9:20PM
“My comment was aimed at Robert not you Lisa”
by lisa_mc
Wednesday, October 10 2012, 7:09PM
“@wagga - my comment actually said there was nothing to suggest he was blind drunk.....”
by wagga01
Wednesday, October 10 2012, 6:47PM
“no where does it say he was blind drunk and the insurance will do everything they can to get out off paying you should wait for the facts before you assume anything about being blind drunk he liked a drink like most off us but that does not mean he was drunk”
by lisa_mc
Wednesday, October 10 2012, 2:43PM
“@karinfall & robert21 - your comments seem to assume the man was blind drunk! There is no reason to suggest this, and I would be a little bit inclined to agree with you if he was! Sorry but a sweeping generalisation there!”
by redcat
Wednesday, October 10 2012, 3:28AM
“by llamalambTuesday, October 09 2012, 9:20PM
Come on Santander, do the humane thing and help out. Good publicity from this would be good for business. The current news coverage will mean customers avoiding Santander like the plague."
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It would be great if they did but I think all insurance companies refuse to pay out for an incident if you have been drinking alcohol. It really pays to check the small print, don't assume that it is just Santander (Homecare) that includes this in their holiday insurance policies.
I hope Mr Nethercot makes a full recovery.”
by Robert21a
Tuesday, October 09 2012, 10:16PM
“Presumably he must have been fairly drunk. Insurance would pay up if it was just the odd drink or two. Sorry to say it but people really do have to take more responsibility for themselves.”
by llamalamb
Tuesday, October 09 2012, 9:20PM
“How many people drink absolutely no alcohol on holiday? There seems to be no differentiation between binge drinking hooligans and somebody who has a couple of glasses of wine. It would seem that the majority of people who think they have holiday insurance actually have no cover.
Come on Santander, do the humane thing and help out. Good publicity from this would be good for business. The current news coverage will mean customers avoiding Santander like the plague.”
by karinfall1955
Tuesday, October 09 2012, 7:18PM
“It is wise to read the terms and condiitons beforehand. Yes, it is boring and time consuming but it can save a lot of grief further down the line.”
by wagga01
Tuesday, October 09 2012, 5:54PM
“i work with his dad and my thoughts go out to the family we will be donateing some money for him the insurance will do what they can to get out off paying but they are quiet happy to take your money from you but when a accident happens they find a way out off paying hope he gets better and gets home soon”
by llamalamb
Tuesday, October 09 2012, 5:32PM
“Insurance companies don't like to payout do they?”