Windows 8 crash product key lost

I recently upgraded my windows 7 home premium dell n5030 to windows 8 via the online offer. all was ok until the laptop crashed and i had to do a full factory reset of the laptop. now that i have done this it says i need to activate windows, but i dont have the product key as i saved it on the laptop before crash, and my hotmail account is set to automatically delete emails (i didnt know this until now). i tried on microsoft site to recover my key but it says i havnt purchased one when clearly i have.......

Can anyone help me?

Nope, you're screwed...

seriously, we cant help, too bad you lost all proof of your license, lesson learnt right?

If purchases it online you could call micro soft to see if they are able to provide you a new key