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A cyclist whose head shattered a taxi’s windscreen in a “horrific” crash today spoke of his shock after being sued by the cab firm for up to £5,000 in damages.

Sasha Evans, 28, said he was “lucky to be alive” after suffering severe head trauma when he was thrown in the air following the collision with a Ford Galaxy at a junction in Nunhead.

The teaching assistant broke his leg, teeth, cheekbone and suffered permanent facial scarring in the crash, which happened about 3am on January 18, 2015. He spent six days in King’s College hospital, in Denmark Hill.

Mr Evans, who is also a musician and a student at Goldsmiths, only recently managed to get back on his bike after months of physiotherapy and four months off work.

It was only when trying to take out a loan to cover his loss of earnings did he realise the minicab firm, The Keen Group, had made a claim against him.

He claims the court summons were sent to an old address before judgement was imposed in his absence and he was ordered to pay £3,500 in damages, plus legal costs.

Tomorrow Mr Evans is facing the company at Central London County Court. The previous court judgement has been set aside, leading to a new claim from the firm.

Mr Evans is counter-claiming for an amount likely to be around £10,000 once all his injuries and loss of earnings are taken into account.

Mr Evans, who lives on a houseboat in west London, told the Standard: “It’s absolutely crazy, £5,000 is so much money for a non-luxury car.

“I still have huge problems with my leg and can’t really run any more but I’m lucky to be alive. My head wound was so deep.

“I’ve got permanent facial scars and still intense pain when I walk for a long time. It’s been a nightmare. I just worry about the impending court case all the time.”

The multi-instrumentalist, who is a member of the indie band Housewives, had been cycling to a friend’s house in Nunhead when he tried to cross Hollydale Road at the junction with Evelina Road.

He said: “As I was approaching the junction I thought I had enough time to cross. As I committed to go over the first lane, I realised I had miscalculated and the car was going faster than I thought.”

His left leg was broken by the impact and he was thrown into the air.

“My head smashed into his windscreen and I flipped over the car and landed face first on the ground,” he said. “Then it all went black.”

Police attended alongside an ambulance. He decided not to pursue charges against the driver after two witnesses declined to provide statements.

“I didn’t know it was a taxi firm at the time,” he said. “I just thought it was a motorist. A claim was the last thing I wanted to get involved in. I was just so happy to be alive.

“I thought there was an ‘unwritten contract’ that we would both just leave it. Once I found out what they had done, I wanted to counter-claim.”

Mr Evans has been crowd-funding to raise £850 to fund a medical report and legal fees.

The Keen Group was approached for comment.

To donate to Mr Evans, visit this link