A MAN who survived a car crash that left him on a life support machine for five days has won a five-year battle to secure his future.

Michael Hankins won a £340,000 compensation payout after a crash that nearly killed him in October 2003.

The 27-year-old still suffers from memory problems which mean he is unable to hold down a job.

But thanks to the cash he can now start planning a future.

The money has been put in trust and Mr Hankins, of Bicester, is unable to withdraw it without his parents Anne and Terry’s consent.

The former restaurant supervisor at Burger King, Cherwell Valley Services, had accepted a lift home from a colleague.

Mr Hankins said the only thing he remembered from the crash, which happened at a disused railway bridge in Kings Sutton, was repeatedly telling the driver to slow down.

Mr Hankins, who had to be cut out of the car, needed emergency surgery to remove two blood clots from his brain. He also had to have plastic surgery to rebuild the area under his left eye.

Meanwhile, his parents were on holiday in Canada and hospital staff, fearing the worst, told them to rush to his bedside.

He survived, but five years on is still struggling to recover and pick up his life again.

He said: “It has been five years of hell.

“My mum and dad have taken a lot of it with my temper.

“First of all I wasn’t allowed out on my own because I was on anti-epilepsy medicine and then there was the frustration because I can’t hold down a proper job.

“It was a life or death situation – now I don’t let anything bother me.”

Mr Hankins’ claim was through the Motor Insurers Bureau, which compensates victims of uninsured accidents.

Because he was a member of union Unite he got free legal advice.

Next for Mr Hankins will be passing his driving test and he is considering a career running discos. He currently helps a friend.

His father, a former Bicester firefighter, said: “He’s never going to be the same again, the money is to pay for him and his future.”

Les Sibley, a senior Unite trade union representative, said: “We have won more than £4m in compensation claims for our members. This demonstrates why it is important to belong to a union.”