BANGKOK, THAILAND – A 23-year-old British backpacker remained in a Bangkok hospital with life-threatening head injuries after a serious motorbike crash, while his family struggled to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds for his treatment and repatriation.
Backpacker critically injured in Bangkok crash
British traveller Tiger Duggan, who had been backpacking in Thailand since 16 January after working for a gold mining company in Perth, Western Australia, suffered severe head injuries in a motorbike accident on 1 February. He was being treated at Med Park Hospital in Bangkok and, according to his family, stayed in a critical condition, although recent tests offered cautious optimism.
Scan offers hope but long recovery expected
His mother Lisa Duggan, a neonatal nurse from Milton Keynes, said a recent brain scan had shown encouraging signs.
“Signs of life,”
said Lisa Duggan, mother, adding that her son no longer needed medication to stabilise his blood pressure. She described this as
“all good news,”
said Lisa Duggan, mother, but warned the family expected a
“very, very long road with months more treatment and tests.”
said Lisa Duggan, mother.
Insurance rejects claim over ‘dangerous activity’
According to the family, Tiger’s travel insurer refused to cover the costs because the crash was classified as involvement in a “dangerous activity.” Ongoing treatment at Med Park Hospital was costing about £2,500 per day, and the family estimated a medically supervised flight back to the UK would be between £150,000 and £170,000.
Fundraiser buys time as costs mount
Relatives said they had already paid nearly £120,000 in just nine days and faced possible additional repatriation costs of up to £170,000. An online fundraising campaign had brought in more than £180,000 in donations, for which the family said they were “incredibly grateful.” Yet, with a large share of that money already used for hospital and transport expenses, they continued to describe their situation as “desperate.”
Family criticises limited UK government support
Lisa and her husband Kieron, a plumber, were keeping vigil at Tiger’s bedside in Bangkok together with other relatives, including their son River. They criticised the British Foreign Office, saying it had so far sent only a general email with links to guidance pages.
“There has been no phone call, no personal email, no one has offered us anything,”
said Lisa Duggan, mother, adding that the family had already found the information on repatriation themselves through an online search at the start. She appealed to the UK government to step in, given the extremely high costs, and pointed out that assistance had been provided in other cases.
Call for awareness of travel insurance small print
A family spokesperson told the British newspaper Daily Mail that Tiger’s parents were fighting relentlessly to secure the help he needed.
“They are fighting tooth and nail to get him the help he needs,”
said family spokesperson, and the family were deeply grateful to all donors. At the same time, she warned that many young people were unaware of clauses on risky activities in overseas insurance policies and said she hoped media attention would make parents and travellers more alert to this issue.
Cautious statement from authorities
A spokesperson for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office gave only a brief response when asked about the case.
“We continue to support the family of a British man injured in Thailand,”
said Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesperson, without providing details on any possible measures.