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£20 million pay-out after crash left victim seriously brain injured

A motorcyclist left with devastating injuries after being hit by an uninsured driver in Wolverhampton has been awarded more than £20 million by a court.

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The settlement, following a six-year legal battle, is believed to be one of the largest of its kind

The settlement, following a six-year legal battle, is believed to be one of the largest of its kind.

The money will ensure that he can be cared for at home for the rest of his life.

The victim, who has not been named but was 19 at the time, was on his motorbike when a car smashed into him at a city centre crossroads more than 10 years ago.

Despite wearing a crash helmet, he suffered a fractured skull and blow to the brain as well as several broken bones.

The car driver, who was at the wheel of a Ford Puma, drove from the nearside across the victim’s path with the intention of going straight ahead over the junction after failing to see the bike approaching.

The motorcyclist could not stop in time and fell from his machine, slamming into the side of the Puma.

He was taken to hospital where he remained for several months.

Now 29, he is being treated in a rehabilitation hospital for victims of acquired brain injury but hopes to move to his own home with a support package around him.

A court order prevents identification of him.

As the Puma driver had no insurance in place at the time of the collision, a claim was logged with the Motor Insurers Bureau, which is responsible for meeting claims relating to uninsured motorists.

Although a judgment on liability was made in 2011 and interim payments were given to ensure the victim’s care in a rehabilitation centre, legal proceedings have been on-going since to gain a financial settlement that would secure his future.

Tim Gray, of FBC Manby Bowdler’s personal injury and clinical negligence department who led the negotiations, said: “I am very pleased that we have been able to conclude these long and drawn out proceedings. The claim was hard fought, following an incident that has devastated the life of a blameless man. It will allow him to have the best and most appropriate care in his own home as he deserves.”