The distraught daughter of an East Yorkshire pensioner who died earlier this year without his family knowing he had been involved in an accident says she is still searching for answers from the NHS. Emma Hayes only learned her father, Peter Hayes, had spent a week in hospital when she was told over the phone, by a doctor, of his death,
Mr Hayes, 76, who lived in Aldbrough, was involved in a car crash on May 29 and was initially taken to the Emergency Department of Hull Royal Infirmary where he also spent time in the Major Trauma ward and then was later transferred to Castle Hill Hospital. He died a week later on June 5, when his condition suddenly deteriorated.
Ms Hayes, who lives in Preston, had spent the week trying to reach her dad – explaining that it was not uncommon for him to go out of contact for short spells of time. A neighbour of Mr Hayes’ had noticed his car was missing from his drive and assumed he was out.
Ms Hayes said: “The first I knew about him being in an accident was when I received a phone call from a doctor saying he had died. This was a week later. So, nobody had cared to tell me that he had been brought in.
“Apparently somebody tried to find my number the day that he was admitted to Hull Royal Infirmary and they couldn’t find my number and forgot to pass the message on to the next team. So nobody followed it up,” she claimed.
She added: “My dad was in hospital for a week and he must have died thinking none of his family cared. Nobody came to visit him.
“They found my number quick enough once he’d passed away. And I got phone calls all the time from the hospital because my dad gave them my number and they used to ring me about his appointments.
“So, they had my number. I’m not happy at all with the way this all happened.”
In June, Ms Hayes complained to NHS Humber Health Partnership which runs the two hospitals and has just received an official response, which she does not accept. She says both hospitals and the police, who attended the crash scene, “have a lot to answer for” however Humberside Police say Mr Hayes’ injuries at the scene did not meet the criteria for a family liaison officer to be sent out.
“The response to me – about feeling the way I do – was to go to my GP and get some pills,” she added of the hospitals’ response. “They haven’t offered counselling, nothing. They’ve offered me nothing for this. And I don’t want this to happen to anybody else. I’m living an absolute nightmare since my dad passed away in June.
“I just can’t live with the fact that he died thinking nobody cared for him. I would have been there like a shot, as soon as they told me.”
Ms Hayes is now considering legal advice, believing her dad’s case involves negligence. In Humber Health Partnership’s official response to Ms Hayes, seen by HullLive, the NHS group says it fully acknowledges a failing in the lack of contact.
She added: “They just need to be held accountable for it. They say sorry but sorry doesn’t bring my dad back, sorry doesn’t give me those seven days he was in hospital back. Sorry just doesn’t cut it.”
A spokeswoman for NHS Humber Health Partnership said: “We would like to apologise to Mr Hayes’s daughter Emma for the distress we have caused. We launched an investigation after Ms Hayes contacted us with her concerns.
“We have been in touch with her directly to report our findings and outline the steps our senior nursing team are taking to ensure this mistake is never repeated. We accept we did not deliver the standard of care our patients and their families expect on this occasion and we would like to assure Ms Hayes we will learn from our error.”
A spokesperson for Humberside Police said: “To lose a loved one in any circumstance is always a devastating time to navigate through, and our thoughts and sympathies remain with Mr Hayes’ family as they continue to grieve for the loss of him. On Thursday, May 29, 2025, officers were called to attend Great Hatfield in Hull after we received reports of a two-vehicle road traffic collision.
“Police and ambulance attended, and Mr Hayes was taken to hospital by paramedics to receive treatment. Mr Hayes’ injuries were assessed by medical professionals as not believed to be life threatening, and it was determined that the investigation did not meet the criteria for a referral to our Serious Collisions Unit, where a family liaison officer would usually be deployed to inform the next of kin.
“First responding officers who attended the scene continued to progress lines of enquiries to understand the circumstances surrounding the collision however seven days after the collision, on Thursday, 5 June 2025, Mr Hayes sadly passed away.
“After every death following a road traffic collision, an investigation is carried out by our Serious Collisions Unit to determine how the collision occurred. As part of this investigation, a post mortem took place where the Coroner concluded that Mr Hayes died from natural causes and no further enquiries needed to be carried out by Humberside Police.
“A death in any circumstance is heartbreaking, and our thoughts will always remain with Mr Hayes’ family.”
