A man who was on a life-support machine for five days after being seriously injured in a car crash has won his battle for compensation.

Michael Hankins, 27, was given a lift home from work by a colleague who crashed his car at a disused railway bridge. All Mr Hankins can remember about the accident is telling the driver to slow down.

After the crash, Mr Hankins had to be cut from the vehicle. In hospital he required emergency surgery to remove blood clots from his brain and plastic surgery to rebuild the area around his left eye.

The last five years have been very difficult for Mr Hankins as he struggled to cope with his injuries. He had to take anti-epilepsy medication because of the brain injury and he suffers from memory problems. This has made it difficult for him to hold down a job.

Mr Hankins made a claim through the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB), an organisation set up for the purpose of compensating the victims of negligent uninsured and untraced motorists. Mr Hankins received £340,000.

If you have been hurt in a road traffic accident for which someone else was responsible, you could be entitled to claim compensation for your injury. It is not widely known that it is possible to receive compensation even if the person responsible for the accident is uninsured or cannot be traced.

Visit the MIB web site for further information.