Keen Traveller And Writer Urges Road Users To Be More Careful

A man from Leeds who is writing his second book on his world travels after being seriously injured in a car accident is marking Road Safety Week by urging road users to stay safe.

Max Muteliso, from Alwoodley, was just 20 when the car he was a back seat passenger in was involved in a serious road traffic accident near the Snapethorpe footbridge in November 2002. 

Max sustained a fractured skull and internal bleeding to his brain and was left with weakness down one side of his body and some impairment to his vision.  He also uses a wheelchair.

Following the accident, Max instructed serious injury and court of protection lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to help him rebuild his life and access specialist treatment and therapies he required to assist with his recovery.

Now, 17 years on, Max, who has travelled the world and is currently writing his second book, has joined with his legal team to mark this year’s Road Safety Week by sharing how “different” his life is following his accident.

Expert Opinion

“Max is such an inspirational man and his determination has led him to live an interesting life full of travelling and writing despite his serious injuries.

He is a great example of what you can do when you set your mind to something, but he has had a long recovery and is still hugely affected by something tragic that happened 17 years ago.

We felt it was important to share Max’s story as part of Road Safety Week to highlight the importance of taking care on the roads and what the possible consequences are of being careless and reckless.”
Joanne Fraser - Partner

In 2015, Max travelled around the world as an Accessibility and Inclusion Independent Researcher, and he went on to publish his own book – Headfirst Thrills On Wheels – about his experiences.

This year, Max has continued his travels by visiting France and Zimbabwe, and he is now working on his next book.

He said: “I am getting better all the time, but it has been a long and difficult process.

“I have been determined to live my life to the full ever since the accident happened but everything is very different for me now and I would never wish anyone to go through what I did back then.

“I hope that people will listen to my story and look after each other when out on the roads.  Otherwise it can be a dangerous place.”

Road Safety Week runs from 18 to 24 November.

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