'It's barbaric.'
A man who had his leg and fingers cut off by a freight train has lost his mobility car he relied on to live independently.
Tariq Hussain, from Slough, miraculously survived a catastrophic train accident in his early 20s that cost him limbs and put him in a coma for almost a month.
He was crushed under a heavy train carrying bricks after he fell off the platform at Reading station at 3am, dragging the young man for a third of a mile before it was able to stop.
Tariq, now 44, has been able to focus on his job as a customer service adviser, take his teenage son to practice, and coach kids’ football thanks to his adjusted car making it possible for him to drive with one leg
With his body breaking down, Tariq decided to apply for extra care allowance to pay his mum for cleaning help as he can’t reach certain places and has to top around to hoover.
And basic tasks such as cooking, cleaning and even buttoning up a shirt are difficult and take a toll on his body as he uses crutches most of the time.
But now the dad-of-one has lost the car after a change to his benefits.
Walking on crutches and being on the move as a ‘one legged football coach’ for a years means Tariq’s wrist and knee are ‘shot through’ with terrible pain, he explained.
However, his bid for enhanced mobility rate was refused by an independent tribunal when he appealed a decision by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
While he now receives more money directly after the benefits change, he no longer qualifies for the car provided by Motability, an independent charity.
Previously, money for the car was paid directly to the charity from his previous benefit, meaning for years Tariq didn’t see a penny on his account but he got a suitable car.
Despite having more cash now, the standard amount is not enough to pay for an adjusted car on his own, meaning he is facing an uncertain future relying on others.
He told Metro.co.uk: ‘It’s barbaric. I’ve made that point at the tribunal. It’s also for those who can’t fight like I can.’
He praised Motability for being ‘bloody amazing.’
Since they were stopped being paid last August, the charity still kept providing him with an almost brand-new car.
‘They said a couple of weeks ago they need it back, and I said I can’t argue with that. Nine months, not having been paid. I gave it back, but it makes you feel really disabled,’ he said.
‘I’ve always had very independent way of living.
‘I’ve been really good for the town. I don’t just sit by, I’m a full time worker, I’ve always paid my National Insurance, I’ve coached children, I’ve mentored newly disabled, I’ve had a family, and this is the first time this feels very threatened.’
After the devastating news at the beginning of June, his friend set up a GoFundMe campaign to raise money to help him buy an adapted car of his own.
Tariq said doesn’t remember what happened, but he was told his leg was amputated at the scene just below the hip and he had ‘degloved’ both of his arms and wrists.
On his left hand, surgeons managed to reconstruct what was left into one finger-like shape along with his thumb, while on his right hand the wrist does not move.
He said: ‘I was 21, it was entirely my fault and I fell of the station. I was drunk. I don’t blame anyone else.
‘The recovery was not as difficult as you might think. I was very angry for a few years, angry at myself. How stupid was this.’
Despite the horrific incident, Tariq has managed to ‘half of my life with the injuries’ and been able to cope, work full-time and start a family.
While he has been able to adjust mentally and physically, including driving, he said the phantom pains ‘can be really, really bad.’
Tariq said all he has done this week is to ‘ask for lifts.’
‘I’ve taken a week off because I’ve been really upset. I’m going back to work but the first thing I’ve had to do is ask for lifts.
‘My boy lives across the town, and I’ve not been able to see his as much.
‘I’ve only got a couple of really important things in my life – my family, job, football, and I can’t do any of those without it.’
While is work is located a less than a mile away from his home, hopping on crutches on an uneven and wet surfaces can be dangerous.
‘In the meantime, when my wrist goes, and it goes, I’ll be back in hospital, which will cost way more than that.’
‘There is something inherently wrong with the system here. Somebody’s got to take a look at how it works.’
He said the decision to not award him the enhanced mobility element that qualifies him for the car is ‘so daft.’
‘They are going to make my disability worse, which means I’m going to rely more on the NHS, whereas now I can be a positive force.’
While Tariq was in a position of getting support from his work and family, he said he was worried for those with a disability who struggled mentally, who could not defend themselves.
The DWP declined to comment on the decision by the independent tribunal.
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