Bus company is sued over tram death crash

A tram operator is suing a London bus company for hundreds of thousands of pounds over a crash in which a passenger was decapitated.

Builder Andrzei Karcz, 28, died when he was thrown through the top-deck front window of the No 468 bus in the centre of Croydon.

Six other passengers were injured when the bus driver, Raouf Mraidi, went through a red light, crashing the double-decker into a tram, several shop fronts and a BMW in September 2008.

Tramtrack Croydon is seeking damages from Mraidi's employer, Go-Ahead Group.

Mraidi, 30, was jailed for four years for causing death by dangerous driving after being tracked down while on the run in his native France.

Tramtrack Croydon said its tram was out of action for a year because it sustained "extensive damage" which cost £328,617 to repair.

In a writ filed at the High Court, the company claims at least that figure in damages plus unspecified amounts to cover loss of profits, additional costs and interest.

The writ says Tramtrack will rely on Mraidi's conviction as "evidence of his negligence", for which it claims Go-Ahead is "vicariously liable". It adds that Mraidi "failed in all the circumstances to take reasonable care and to drive to the standard of a reasonably competent professional bus driver".

Mr Karcz lived in Croydon with his wife Edyta, then 27, who saw the aftermath of the crash from another bus, unaware he was involved.

Go-Ahead Group failed to respond to requests for a comment.