​His mental health was adversely affected by his witnessing of the assault. Within a few months of the assault, our client took ill health retirement from the railways.

The medical evidence obtained confirmed that our client did develop an adjustment disorder following the assault which he was witness too. This is a recognised psychiatric condition. The medical evidence also confirmed that the adjustment disorder had largely resolved by early autumn 2005 but that he has been left thereafter with an ongoing specific phobic disorder in relation to railway travel. This specific phobic disorder of railway travel had not resolved at the date of the hearing. Due to the ongoing specific phobic disorder our client remained unfit from a mental health perspective to return to work as a railway conductor.

A claim was made to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority for both the psychological injuries that our client had developed and also the loss of earnings and pension that he had incurred. Our client had managed to obtain alternative employment working as a delivery driver for Tesco but his salary was significantly less than he would have received had he continued to work on the railway. In addition to this his pension was also reduced.

At the final hearing, our client was awarded £2500 in respect of the tariff award for disabling mental illness and £37,247.16 in respect of his loss of earnings and pension.