A disabled teenager with dwarfism has won a legal battle against the Government, after they attempted to slash his benefits.

3ft 10in George Coppen, 19, had been claiming disability living allowance as he suffers from arthritis and relies on a specially-adapted car to get around.

But the teenager was left stunned when he received a letter saying he was losing his car and 75 per cent of his Disability Living Allowance (DLA) handouts because he wasn’t disabled enough.

George, from Mickleover, Derbyshire, said: “The cut to my disability benefits didn’t just lower my income, it cut my ability to be independent.

"I wasn’t going down without a fight. I wasn’t just doing it for me, I was doing it for the community of people with dwarfism.”

But just a week before he was due to take his test - in his specially-adapted car, given to him by the DLA’s motability scheme - George received the bombshell from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

He said: "I got a letter saying I had to have an assessment. So I went and answered questions and a couple of weeks later I got a letter saying they didn’t think I should have my car.

"I’m 19, I’ve got arthritis, I’ve got a metal rod in my back and it really restricts my day-to-day life.

"I’ve been told in my mid-20s I’m going to have a new knee and that’s not normal, so I was angry.

"The Government wouldn’t let me keep my car - I had to borrow a car for my test.

Back behind the wheel: George is delighted with the tribunal’s verdict (SWNS)

When a request by George and his parents to reconsider his case was refused, the charity Disability Direct stepped in; they represented George at Wednesday’s hearing, which ruled in his favour.

George said: "At the tribunal, I became a person and not just a number. Then it was agreed that I should have it.”

Rob Barfield, a welfare rights and benefits officer at Disability Direct, said: “I tell people, this is not a benefit, it’s a compensation to cover the increased costs of living for having a disability. It’s a victory of common sense really. I think it’s brilliant.”

A spokesperson for the DWP said: “Just because a new decision has been made at appeal stage does not mean the previous decision was incorrect.

"In the majority of appeal cases, decisions are overturned because claimants have submitted more evidence.”