A CAR passenger left with severe brain damage has been awarded £2.5m after suing his dead foster father who drove into a wall during an epileptic fit.

Shane Burns was 14 when the road accident, in August 1991, left him needing care and supervision for the rest of his life.

Shane, originally from Easington Colliery, County Durham, is now being looked after by the Brain Injury Rehabilitation Trust (BIRT).

He lives in a flat of his own in St Barnabas Way, Sunderland, at a cost of £800 a week.

His foster father, Derek Wilding, died in the accident and his motor insurers did not dispute liability at a hearing of the High Court in London yesterday.

Shane, now 25, was in a coma for a month after the crash in Lister Street, Hartlepool, that also seriously injured foster mother Linda Wilding, 55, and foster brother Kevin Wilding, 21.

A fourth passenger, the boy's grandmother, Alice Weekes, 73, died several weeks after the crash.

Relatives said that Linda Wilding was now living in Spain and was unavailable for comment.

An inquest in 1991 heard that Mr Wilding almost certainly suffered an epileptic fit before slamming the car into the wall.

Mr Justice Newman, sitting in London, presided over settlement terms agreed yesterday which will give Shane, who spent seven years living in an unsuitable Gateshead hostel, a total of £2,510,000 in damages.

The judge said Shane's memory was poor, he lacked motivation and needs help to complete the most simple task. "He lacks the ability to think for himself about his personal hygiene routine, feeding himself or motivating himself.

"He is sociable but lacks the caution and restraint, and has no ability to judge and lacks insight into the conduct of others. He is therefore open to exploitation."

A BIRT report revealed Shane has a particular problem with alcohol.

It said: "He would, unless restrained, drink too much. When in drink, he becomes aggressive and could be at risk of injury from other."

The court heard that when Shane goes to his local pub to play snooker, his pocket money is strictly limited to stop him drinking too much, and a support worker monitors him in the bar every 20 minutes.

Shane's counsel, Ronald Walker, said the settlement should be enough to enable him to stay where he is, cared for by BIRT, for the rest of his life.