The family of a man who had his stroke misdiagnosed three times and subsequently died is to receive compensation for the loss.

Jeffery Wingrove, 48, fell ill on December 9th 2006 with severe vomiting and headaches.

His wife, Isabelle, 52, called her GP, but it was the weekend and she was forwarded to an out-of-hours service. Staff there failed to diagnose the stroke and refused a home visit.

By 21:00 GMT that night, Mr Wingrove’s condition had worsened and his wife called paramedics, who diagnosed vertigo and said he did not need to be taken to hospital.

However, at 14:30 GMT the following day, Mr Wingrove had fallen out of bed and had begun hallucinating. He was rushed to Broomfield Hospital and then transferred to the neurosurgical ward at Queen’s Hospital in Romford, but died the next day.

Mrs Wingrove said that had her husband fallen ill on a weekday, he would still be alive.

"All they had to do was come and see him, which my usual GP would have done at the drop of a hat. But it was too much trouble for them," she added.

The family has now been awarded a six-figure sum of compensation by the East of England Ambulance Service and the GP involved.

According to the NHS, a stroke is caused by a disturbance of blood supply to the brain. Strokes are the leading cause of disability in the UK and the third most common cause of death after cancer and coronary heart disease.