Father with brain injury denied disability benefits

A man who needs full-time care after a bicycle collision left him with a traumatic brain injury has been repeatedly refused benefits by the Home Office.

- HOLLY BANCROFT

Under the conditions of his visa, Adam, who is from Syria but has lived in the UK for a decade, isn’t allowed to access any public funds. In September 2022 he suffered brain damaged after he collided head-on with another cyclist in London.

The 27-year-old is now partially blind, has lost hearing in the right ear, cannot communicate properly and cannot leave the house unless in a wheelchair or mobility scooter.

Wife Layla, 32, has made a desperate plea to the government to allow her husband to access benefits as she struggles to support their large family alone.

The Home Office has twice refused to change the conditions of Adam’s visa and allow him to access universal credit or disability benefits.

Layla told The Independent she has now become a full-time carer for Adam, whose name has been changed to keep the family anonymous, on top of looking after six children aged between one and 13.

She said: “He can move around inside the home but he can’t go out unless it’s in a wheelchair or mobility scooter. He is not able to have a conversation, he doesn’t understand things. When he speaks he says all these muddled up random words.”

She said after the accident Adam spent three weeks on life support and a further eight months in hospital.