A FATHER has received £250,000 compensation after suffering life-changing injuries in a work-related accident.

Peter Snowling, 50, may never work again after falling from a ramp while loading a lorry with sacks of peas, which left him with a fractured skull and spinal injuries.

But although he accepted the out-of-court settlement, it will be all he has to live on, alongside the earnings of his wife Sheila, who works part-time.

Mr Snowling, of Mallows Field, Halstead, said: “I can’t walk so far as I did before. Walking up Halstead hill is a task.

“This sum is all I have to live on now because it’s highly unlikely I will work again.”

He agreed the figure with seed producers WA Church (Bures) Ltd, which was fined £8,000, with £4,642 costs, at Bury St Edmunds Magistrates’ Court, in March, for failing to ensure his safety.

Mr Snowling’s skull was cracked in the accident, on November 17, 2008. He suffered three crushed vertebrae, which were too dangerous to be operated on because a piece of bone had wedged against his spinal cord.

The father-of-two said: “It has changed my life. Although I am still here, there are a lot of things I can’t do now that I could do before. I was fit, I was healthy. I could go out for the day, I could take the dog for miles. I used to take my wife out for the day.

“I can’t do that now. Every day seems the same.”

Mr Snowling said he now has to sit comfortably, his memory is impaired, and he cannot lift anything. But he added: “I am sure there are a lot of people out there worse off than me.”

Mr Snowling said the legal action was a “very stressful time.”

He said WA Church (Bures) Ltd is trying to find him a suitable job within the company, but a recent medical check showed his injuries could be too severe.

Mr Snowling now relies on his wife for everyday tasks.

A High Court writ said Mr Snowling had accepted £250,000, but an agreement had yet to be reached for legal costs and a court order is being sought to settle the dispute. The writ was issued by his solicitor Keith Barrett, of Irwin Mitchell.

Robert Church, managing director of WA Church (Bures) Ltd, could not comment on the legal costs issue. Referring to the £250,000 settlement, he said: “The matter has been dealt with correctly by our insurers and agreed with both parties and settled.”