A former Oxfordshire man whose life was devastated by injuries suffered in a head-on road crash has been awarded more than £180,000 in damages by the High Court.

John Merriman, 56, formerly of Swallows Close, Langford Village, Bicester, loved his job as a £100,000-a-year construction director of BDL Group plc before the April 1993 accident transformed his life.

The High Court was told that whiplash and post traumatic stress disorder turned him from a sociable, fun-loving man into an irritable, short-tempered person who rarely goes out of the office.

Mr Merriman, now living in Manor Road, Penn, Buckinghamshire, sued the driver of the car who collided with him, James Paget, of Landseer, Lockleaze, Bristol.

Although Mr Paget's insurers admitted liability, they disputed the amount of compensation due to Mr Merriman and instructed private investigators to video him in an unsuccessful attempt to prove he was deliberately exaggerating his symptoms.

But Mr Justice Buckley awarded Mr Merriman £187,873 damages on Friday, including past and future loss of earnings.

The judge said: "My general conclusion is that there has been some exaggeration but that once the litigation and the stress associated with it is out of the way, Mr Merriman will essentially see some significant improvement occur.

"I do not say that Mr Merriman is a man who invented symptoms no sane person would volunteer to undergo treatment, tests and observations without a good cause. "Although I do find that there's a real risk that Mr Merriman will not work to 65, his immediate future is secure."

The judge said Mr Merriman had been a keen amateur sportsman before the accident, but has played no active sport since.

Speaking after the judgement, Mr Merriman said he was 'delighted' at the judge's finding he had not deliberately exaggerated his symptoms.