A report by BBC news suggests millions of UK holiday makers will holiday without travel insurance this year because of the recession.

This year more than 14 million people will jet off to the sun without holiday insurance; thats one in five UK holiday makers. But for some, it's a mistake that can cost them their life savings, even their home.

This wasn't how 25 year old Jamie Bedford's family expected him to come home from a two week holiday in northern Cyprus. After a car crash left him with a serious head injury, he ended up in a local hospital. His family had to pay for his treatment, his flight home and an ambulance to pick him up.

In an interview with BBC reporter Jamie Coulson, Michelle Bedford, Jamie's Mum said: "Jamie had been in a coma for about a week and a half and we've been fighting to get him home for the last three weeks. It's been a long, long, process but obviously he's getting there and so we just can't wait to get him back to Sheffield and hopefully get him rehabilitated."

Jamie's family was lucky; he was fit to fly by scheduled flight. Travellers needing repatriation by air ambulance can face bills into six figures unless they take out cover.

Sandy Murray, ABTA commented: "It's not expensive and you've got peace of mind for if anything goes wrong and that's the main thing. If anything goes wrong, it's going to cost you. You may have to put your house up for sale to try and raise extra money, anything could happen."

Ros Griffiths and her husband Steve liked the Canaries so much they retired there from Rotherham. Then Steve tripped on some steps and broke his neck. Since last November he has been confined to a hospital bed in Gran Canaria paralysed from the neck down.

Ros Griffiths commented: "He hasn't got a life really, he's just laying there staring. He hasn't even got a clock to look at, he's just staring at ceilings and then when they turn him he's staring at a window. I feel stupid; we should have got insurance."

It's difficult to really appreciate Ros and Steve's full predicament; separated from each other and separated from their family back hom and now faced with finding £20,000 to get back to the UK which is money they don't have.

Back in South Yorkshire, Jamie Bedford is now almost home, but his Mum who has had to spend five weeks nursing her son has a stark warning: "Please, please make sure before they go to take out insurance because I do not want anybody to go through what I've been through."

Jamie's family are clinging to the hope he did take out last minute insurance for his holiday and then forgot due to his injury. It's an increasingly unlikely hope.