Delivery driver hit on head in France hopes for payout

A LORRY driver who was injured by attackers trying to stow away in his truck is waiting to hear if he can claim compensation for his injuries.

Delivery driver Brian Glover, pictured, who works for Biddulph-based distribution firm IRF, needed hospital treatment after he was attacked by what he believes were illegal immigrants in Dunkirk, France.

Mr Glover, from Ikins Drive, Bignall End, had parked his lorry at a supermarket, and as he returned from buying boxes of wine he was struck on the head from behind. The 55-year-old, who has worked for IRF for six years, needed five stitches to a wound on his forehead.

He told The Sentinel: "I came out of the supermarket and saw a group of stowaways trying to tamper with my trailer, so I shouted at them and they ran off. But then the next thing I knew I felt something sharp hit my forehead. They came up from behind and must have swung round what I think was a piece of lead on a rope.

"It knocked my glasses off and I realised blood was streaming down my face.

"Then two other drivers came running over and the stowaways ran off again, but then they came back and attacked the other drivers.

"One of them was worse off than me and needed more than a dozen stitches."

Mr Glover said he was told by French police that arrests would be unlikely because the offenders had run off.

He has submitted a claim to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board following the attack last July, and is waiting to hear whether he is eligible for compensation. The board will contact the French police for a report before deciding whether to take his application further.

He added: "We are always vigilant because we know immigrants are everywhere. But now it will always be in the back of my mind and I will be even more cautious."

While this is the first time an IRF employee has been attacked, the firm's transport manager Alan Dale revealed it has previously been fined by the UK Border Agency for harbouring so-called 'clandestines'.

He said: "Our drivers are all trained to do checks. They have a big check list and all the proper gear, but stowaways always manage to find a way to enter a truck. They're coming in from all over Europe, and they see an English-plated truck and chance their arm.

"I honestly don't know what the solution is. We try our best but we get penalised for it. On this occasion Brian was lucky that he wasn't more seriously injured, but it shouldn't have happened in the first place."