Veteran Pegswood soldier was badly injured in a hit and run on his way to celebrating cancer all clear

Neil Harmer, who served tours of Iraq and Afghanistan, was having a rare night out after spending six months being treated for groin cancer.

But before he reached his local social club in Pegswood, he was hit by a car as he crossed the road outside. He spent the next year recovering after surgery to repair snapped ligaments.

Despite his misfortune, the 46-year-old says it is all part of the tapestry of life and would not change a thing.

Neil, who trains up specialist vehicle engineers across the North East, said: “Don’t get me wrong. This has been a mountain to get over. It’s been a really hard battle.

“I have seen a lot of horrible things in the army, but this has affected me far worse mentally. Just when I had beaten cancer, this happened.

“I know most people would have just given up, but I wouldn’t change a thing as it’s part of life’s journey. And it has led me to today where I have a great job, life and family.”

Neil had spent months being treated with blasts of radiotherapy at Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital for an aggressive form of cancer.

After doctors gave him the all-clear in March 2022, he decided to meet friends and his fiancé Caroline at his local Pegswood Social Club to celebrate. But as he crossed the road, a car cut a corner and ploughed into him.

He said: “I was shocked. It sped up and went straight into me. I was in so much pain.”

Neil was fitted with a knee brace and medics at the Northumbria hospital in Cramlington later revealed he had snapped his AC and MCL ligaments and required surgery. He spent the next three months bed bound with his fiancé caring for him.

He said: “If I hadn’t had my career in the army and the mental strength, I don’t know what I would have done.”

Neil spent 20 years in the Royal Logistics Core with tours in Iraq and Afghanistan as a supply specialist between 1992 and 2012. He was diagnosed with aggressive groin cancer in 2021.

He said: “Thankfully my bosses at Vertu Motors were brilliant and supported me throughout my recovery.”

Doctors have since told him after his latest bout of medical treatment that he has arthritis in his knee and will need to have his knee replaced and faces two further revision operations.

Facing the prospect of further knee operations and growing NHS waiting lists, Neil decided to take legal action with motor accident specialists Express Solicitors.

He received a substantial £100,000 settlement with the help of his lawyer Daniel Jamieson who said: “Neil was celebrating being cancer free when a speeding driver crushed his leg just crossing the street.

“People’s lives can change in an instant and this award will help him with further treatment and secure his family’s future.”

Neil added: “I will face the future with positivity. You only get one life and you have to be happy and live it to the full.”

A Northumbria Police spokesperson said that no-one has been arrested in connection with the incident and inquiries are ongoing.