A Harley Davidson rider who lost an eye and suffered serious injuries during a head-on collision with a biker from the Black Country has been awarded more than £1 million in compensation.

Simon Powell, aged 45, was riding his prestige 1,200cc machine along the B4363 near the Shropshire village of Cleobury Mortimer when disaster struck at a bend in the road. Mr Powell collided with a 600cc Suzuki being ridden by Neil Auden, of Marlborough Gardens, Wordsley, Stourbridge.

As well as massive orthopaedic injuries, Mr Powell suffered facial wounds and damage to his left eye that subsequently had to be removed.

His head injuries were so grave he has no recollection of the accident that happened on August 3, 2005.

Mr Powell, of Hazelwells Road, Highley, Bridgnorth, took his claim for compensation before top judge Sir Robert Nelson at London’s High Court, seeking massive damages from the Suzuki’s rider, who also has no memory of the crash.

Following a three-day hearing, the judge yesterday ruled that Mr Auden was responsible for the crash and guaranteed Mr Powell a full compensation package.

The full settlement has not yet been arranged but lawyers confirmed it would be in seven figures.

During the hearing, Malcolm Duthie, for Mr Powell, argued Mr Auden rounded the left-hand bend too close to the centre white line before going into an uncontrollable skid that took him over the line and straight into the path of the Harley Davidson.

Shaun Ferris, representing Mr Auden, insisted that it was Mr Powell who was riding too close to the white line and leaning his body over into the path of oncoming traffic, claiming that the Suzuki rider had “no option” but to apply emergency braking.

The judge said: “It seems to me that there is no reason for Mr Auden to have adopted emergency braking, with Mr Powell towards the centre of the road where a motorcycle would be expected to be.

“In these circumstances the reasonable inference to draw is that Mr Auden’s failure simply to move further to his nearside on seeing Mr Powell is due to a combination of inadequate lookout and/or inexperience of this bend to be able to take it at 40mph,” the judge added.