A biker who was left with severe brain injuries after a north-east crash has been awarded more than £100,000 in damages.
Graham Clark was heading home to Inverurie when his bike collided with a car on the A96 Aberdeen to Inverness road in October 2011.
He suffered several fractures and a severe head trauma – which has caused memory problems and mood swings, and ultimately, forced him to quit his job.
The car driver was banned from the road for 50 days and fined £750 after being convicted of careless driving.
But despite his conviction, the driver’s insurance company Axa refused to accept liability for Mr Clark’s injuries, resulting in a three-year court battle for compensation.
Mr Clark, who has a four-year-old daughter Madison with his partner Karen Watt, said he could not remember the accident although recalled driving past an ambulance shortly before it.
He said it had been “frustrating and frightening” not knowing what was wrong with his memory, despite going to the doctor.
“I went back and forth to the doctors for a year and they told me it was just my brain’s way of shutting out the bad experience, but eventually I went to a neuro-psychologist and she diagnosed it as a severe brain injury,” he said.
“It’s really important to know that you’re not a screaming nut and you’ve not lost your mind.”
The 56-year-old, of Townhead Road, Inverurie, eventually left his job with an offshore engineering company and has now come to terms with the fact his old life before the accident has gone.
But with help from charities Headway and Momentum, and a last-minute out-of-court settlement from Axa thanks to the assistance of Motorcycle Law Scotland, Mr Clark is now keen to move forward.
“The money’s taken the pressure off, the mortgage is now paid so I don’t need to worry about that. Karen’s a nurse and this has made it a lot easier for us.
“And obviously we have Madison as well. She’s quite astute, she picks up on it and knows that dad has a few problems.”