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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Amelia Gentleman

‘I felt my spine and body split’: the woman who was hit by a child on a Lime bike – and denied compensation

A woman with a walking stick sits on a chair in her flat.
‘I honestly don’t know how I survived’ … Jane Ouartsi. Photograph: Graeme Robertson/The Guardian

As Jane Ouartsi walked across a pedestrianised square in central London, on a Friday evening in early August three years ago, she linked arms with her partner, Dave Mathias, and told him how much she had enjoyed the afternoon they had spent together, eating pizza in Soho and visiting an art installation. It was the last time she can remember feeling properly happy and relaxed.

“We were walking quite slowly, talking about the art. It’s hard to remember exactly, but I think I was saying what a lovely lunch, and then all of a sudden there was a horrific impact,” she says. “I felt my spine and body split and I thought my life was over.”

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