Lancing man with terminal cancer ‘devastated’ to find life insurance gone

But the 73-year-old was left shell-shocked when, upon going to claim on his policy, he was told there was no money left in the pot.

After paying in £30 every quarter between 1985 and 2010, Derek took what he thought was a small payout of £5,441 with a full £80,000 to be received once he passed away.

Unbeknownst to Derek that £5,441 was his full payout leaving him, according to his step-daughter Emma Hellewell, ‘absolutely devastated’.

“He’s spent 50 years of his life thinking he was sorted, that he had provided security, but it’s not there,” she said.

“He just lies in bed thinking he’s let everyone down, like he’s a financial burden.”

Derek has been Emma’s step-dad for 15 years and she, her husband Matthew and their son Alfie have moved into his Orchard Avenue home to care for him.

His tragic diagnosis of oesophageal cancer in March came just three years after his partner Linda, Emma’s mum, passed away.

With the family only just coming to terms with that loss, Derek’s news was a hammer blow that has been compounded by the insurance mix-up.

Now Emma has started a fundraiser to pay for her step-dad’s funeral and return some of the peace of mind he had mistakenly lived with for so long.

“He’s always been there for me, I don’t know what we’re going to do without him,” said Emma, 38.

“He would give his last pound to anyone – he’d leave himself short to make sure someone else was okay.

“He worked hard all his life to make sure we would be okay and now he feels like he has been robbed. He shouldn’t have to spend the last days of his life worrying about this.”

You can donate to Derek’s funeral fund here: www.gofundme.com/f/derek039s-funeral-fund