A 64-YEAR-OLD cyclist left with head injuries after being pushed off his bike is seeking more than £100,000 in damages.

Derek Hill, of Greenhaven Drive, Thamesmead, was cycling along Carlyle Road when he says a car deliberately slowed down so its passenger could lean out to push him off the bicycle.

Mr Hill was left in hospital for three weeks with serious head injuries and a broken hip.

He also now suffers from epilepsy and claims he was forced to take redundancy from his job as an engineering manager on the East London Line.

Mr Hill said: “After being diagnosed with epilepsy I was advised by my neurologist not to cycle - which I loved - drive, go near deep water, heights, or even work with anything mechanical.

“I feel as though a slice of my life has been stolen. I have two children I can no longer take to school and I can’t even be left alone with them for fear of my having a seizure.”

Mr Hill did not even know he had epilepsy until two years after the incident when he suddenly had a seizure in front of the television.

He said: “After the accident when I returned to work, it was still a struggle due to gaps in my memory and my impaired mental ability.

“I have a young family to support and having lost my employment as a result of my head injury has been devastating for us all.”

His lawyer Liz Dux, from the Russell Jones & Walker firm, said he was making the claim from the Motor Insurers' Bureau compensation fund under the Untraced Drivers Agreement, which allows victims of unknown motorists to claim damages.