Dutch consular officials have helped deal with 332 deaths abroad so far this year, and 40 people died in July alone, RTL Nieuws reported at the weekend.

The broadcaster published the figures in the walk of a spate of accidental deaths among Dutch holidaymakers, including that of a 19-year-old who collapsed on a walking holiday in Italy and a couple who fell from rocks during a climb in France.

Last year, during the coronavirus crisis, government officials helps relatives deal with 283 deaths up to the end of August and in 2019, 278.

The Netherlands has a handful of companies which specialise in repatriating bodies and they also report things are ‘busy’.

‘Statistically a lot of people are travelling and that automatically means more deaths,’ said Dick van Vuure from Van der Heden Internationaal Rouwvervoer. ‘On holiday people are more likely to leave their comfort zone, but sometimes they are just unlucky.’

Motoring organisation also ANWB told the broadcaster it is involved in ‘several hundred’ deaths a year.