Travel insurers are warning there could be more avalanches in the Alps following new snowfalls.
Six skiers were killed and three others injured in the avalanches in Italy and Switzerland this week.
A British girl was pulled out alive by her father and a ski instructor after being buried under an avalanche.
A spokeswoman for Europ Assistance said: "In tragic situations like this people will be relying on insurance cover to help them.
"This shows how important it is for travellers to have the correct type of insurance and to be given all assistance necessary."
Research by Europ Assistance found that skiers and snowboarders had no idea about the cost of uninsured ski accidents.
More than 1,000 adults were asked how much it would cost to receive treatment and fly home a week early if they broke their leg skiing on holiday in Colorado.
- One in ten believed the cost to be as little as between £500 and £1,000.
- Nearly one in four estimated the cost to be between £1,000 and £3,000.
- Only 3% of those surveyed correctly estimated the true cost of repatriation.
A straightforward repatriation involving a patient who has not had surgery is around £7,000, but costs can soar to more than £15,000 for a patient who has undergone surgery.
