A blissful cruise wound up being a holiday from hell - leaving a Huddersfield family thousands out of pocket and missing Christmas together.
But insurance will only cover 40% of the Sharland family’s costs after they had to pay for expensive emergency flights.
Octogenarian Jim Sharland was enjoying a peaceful cruise in the West Indies with companion Joan Thornton, 82, when he fell ill with pneumonia and had to leave the ship.
The costs escalated as Jim’s son Ian had to fly out to Antigua to tend to his 87-year-old father and bring the pair back.
But after booking emergency flights with British Airways, the family - who own Huddersfield butchers Sharland’s - claim to have been left thousands out of pocket due to inflated ticket costs, and have hit out at the airline for their “lack of compassion”.
Ian’s brother Keith, of Almondbury, said: “Ian flew out with the aim of booking my dad and Joan onto extra seats on his return flight.
“Instead Ian had to give Joan his seat on the flight back as my dad was just too ill to fly.”
Ian was charged £750 for Joan to fly back in his seat - £118 more than the original price of the ticket, which had already been paid.
Keith, 59, said: “They were there over Christmas because my father was too ill to fly, so we had to spend it apart.
“Eventually they were given the go-ahead to fly back.”
Booking through the British Airways website, Ian, 65, was quoted $6,225 for the pair to return to the UK, the equivalent of £4,244.
Keith said: “They were shocked - especially as the flights were only £1,551 on Tripsta (a budget flight booking website).
“My father is extremely ill and it was Christmas: don’t they care?
“He did take out insurance, but he has been told he’ll only be covered for 40 per cent of the costs.”
Jim has cancer of the bladder and prostate, as well as diabetes and glaucoma.
Ian, 65, of Beaumont Park, said: “It’s been extremely stressful.”
Ian added his credit cards had also been cancelled while he was in Antigua, adding to the stress of the trip.
A spokeswoman for British Airways declined to comment on the flight ticket prices, and said the charge for Joan’s seat was part of the airline’s policy.
The spokeswoman said: “We do not charge more for passengers who are ill, and you always get charged more when you book a single flight rather than a return.”
