The tale of James Kellett and the tragedy that befell him while on holiday with his wife is a salutary lesson to us all, especially those who may be jetting away for the Easter break.

Mr Kellett's wife Diana fell desperately ill on holiday in Alicante and, sadly, died following a brain aneurysm, after a four-week stay in hospital near the resort.

However, due to an oversight the couple had not booked travel insurance before they departed. Because of that, when Diana died, James was asked to find thousands to fly her body home - money he simply did not have.

And while his wife was in hospital, he had to sleep rough on benches and scrounge for food because he ran out of money and the lack of insurance meant the bills could not be paid.

Travel insurance is a little thing to pay for, compared to the cost of a holiday. But so many of us forget it or don't bother with it, and if everything goes well then it doesn't matter.

But when disaster strikes, as it did for the Kelletts, the failure to buy that relatively cheap travel insurance policy can turn an already terrible situation into an utter crisis.

So if you are travelling this week, or are thinking ahead to booking your holidays in the summer, please don't forget to make sure you are fully insured for your trip.

Fingers crossed, you won't need your insurance at all. But the sad tale of the Kelletts flags up just how important insurance is - and how terrible things can be without it.