Victoria Hollingsworth, a newscaster in the UK, broke her back in a car accident three years ago. During her post-operative care, she learned that many people injured in accidents become homeless due to a lack of insurance funding to modify their existing homes. Victoria is making an effort to raise public awareness regarding the unspoken consequences of becoming disabled in the UK and worldwide.

Toward this end, Victoria is engaging in a series of public speaking events, and has sought professional management to help her spread the word about the “extras” that the critically injured patient needs from their insurance firms.

Victoria says many patients cannot go back to their homes due to the lack of wheelchair access and have to be housed elsewhere.

She said: “I know of a girl around my age who was paralyzed following an accident and had to live in an old people’s home for 18 months.

“Can you imagine your state of mind - coming to terms with life in a wheelchair and having to do that surrounded by people four times your age?

“There is also the story of man who was a new father immediately prior to his accident. His council housed him in a hotel and he rarely got to see his wife and baby.

“She worked full time and he couldn’t afford to eat in the hotel so had to rely on eating take-away food as he had no access to a kitchen.”

Every year around 1,000 people sustain a spinal cord injury, according to the Spinal Injuries Association (SIA).

Aspire, a charity which helps people with spinal injuries, says around two thirds of people could face housing problems after spending between six and 18 months in spinal centres.