Woman says driver caused her to fall off bus

Police are investigating the Stagecoach bus company after a passenger complained she was thrown to the footpath and concussed when a bus driver drove off as she stepped from the door.

Lower Hutt police confirmed they had received a complaint from Elizabeth Vercoe, 49, who says she had to take two weeks off work and has suffered migraines since the September accident.

She wants the driver, who she says did not stop, to be prosecuted and compensation paid for lost wages.

It is the latest controversy to rock Stagecoach in a series of damaging incidents.

A pensioner was admitted to hospital with a broken rib after being thrown three metres when a bus driver braked last Saturday, and a partly blind boy was assaulted and dragged off a bus by a passenger last month after a driver refused to accept his pass.

Mrs Vercoe was getting off the bus in Petone when it accelerated unexpectedly, she said.

She was thrown to the pavement, hitting her head on concrete and badly bruising her left knee. An elderly couple went to her aid when the driver did not stop.

She developed a headache and went to a doctor, who confirmed she was concussed. "'I'm very angry. I lost two weeks' wages and I'm still not fully over it.

"He hasn't bothered to look, he's just driven off. I went flat on my face on the footpath."

Mrs Vercoe complained to Stagecoach but said she had not received an apology. The company did give her free bus tickets and promised to pay for ripped clothing.

A spokesman confirmed police were investigating but were still considering whether to lay careless driving charges against the driver.

Stagecoach Wellington area manager Eddie McCaffrey defended the company's safety record and denied passengers were at risk. He was aware of Mrs Vercoe's complaint but said it had been dealt with.

- nzpa