IT HAS been more than a year, but his traffic accident claim has not been settled.

Retiree Leong Kim Hong, 82, broke his thigh bone last year when he was getting off a bus.

He has since undergone two operations - the first one directly as a result of the incident.

His granddaughter, Miss Michelle Leong, 28, said the insurer of SBS buses, Tokio Marine Insurance, has not yet settled the claim.

Mr Leong is not prepared to disclose the sum involved as the claim is still ongoing.

'Now I can't go anywhere, and it's frustrating,' he said last week at his five-room flat in Telok Blangah.

Mr Leong, who once worked as a Hock Lee bus driver, used to be out and about a lot till the accident happened.

He would take buses from interchange to interchange, exercising, sightseeing, buying things, and finding new places to eat.

His favourite place was Chinatown, where he would meet his friends for tea. But he would also got to Toa Payoh and Tampines. Sometimes, he would go to Changi to watch the planes fly by.

Now, he has to move about in a wheelchair or with a walking aid.

Every morning, his maid takes him to the market. On Sunday, he meets friends at the nearby coffee shop until about 11am. The rest of his day is spent watching TV at home.

When he goes out, he has to wear adult diapers.

So why has the insurance company taken so long to settle his case?

In an e-mail reply to The New Paper, Mr Yeow Joo Yun, head of Tokio Marine's legal department, said: 'There is no undue delay in handling the claim on our end as the claimant took eight months to submit the medical report to us, in August 2008.

'Further, due to intervening events on the side of the claimant that complicated the injury, it is not easy for us to (process) the claim as more due diligence will be required for our claims department.'

Flung from bus

On 22 May last year, Mr Leong took bus number 273 from Bukit Merah interchange, after visiting a polyclinic for his medical check-up.

He tried to alight at the bus stop along Telok Blangah Heights. But when he put one foot on the road, with the other still in the bus, the bus started moving off, and he was flung out.

He fell onto the pavement near the bus stop, and broke his left thigh bone.

Mr Leong told The New Paper in Chinese: 'I couldn't feel my leg, from below the knee.'

Mr Leong shouted and the bus driver stopped. Shortly after, an ambulance arrived.

Retiree Poon Choong Kit, 54, who lives in the same block as Mr Leong, was chatting with some friends at the Senior Citizen's corner nearby.

He witnessed the incident, and verified Mr Leong's account.

Mr Leong was operated on at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH), and a metal piece was placed in his thigh.

Said Miss Leong: 'He was completely immobile, and couldn't walk on his own any more.'

According to her, two SBS staff members came to visit her grandfather in hospital after the incident, with a basket of fruits and flowers.

He was then sent to the Ang Mo Kio-Thye Hua Kwan Hospital to recuperate.

But after a month there, he fell during one of his showers, and broke the metal piece in his thigh.

He then required a second operation at SGH.

After the operation, his relatives transferred him to United Medicare Centre, and later to Pacific Healthcare Nursing Home.

He was discharged in Feburary this year, and now lives with his daughter and another granddaughter. He cannot walk without a walking device, and the family has employed a maid to look after him since January.

His daughter, Madam Alice Leong, 49, a bank officer, has also taken seven days of leave this year to accompany him on his follow-up visits.

Miss Leong wants compensation for her grandfather's two operations - although one was not caused directly by the accident. They want to claim outpatient fees and nursing home fees.

The family also wants to claim for incidental expenses.

'If he hadn't got into an accident in the first place, the subsequent cost wouldn't have been incurred,' she said.

Mr Yeow of Tokio Marine's legal department said: 'We understand the frustration of the claimant, but as an insurer, we have to carry out due diligence in our claims assessment.

'Nevertheless, we have already made a without prejudice offer to the claimant through our lawyers.'

He said he was unable to comment further as this is an ongoing claim.

Meanwhile, the once active Mr Leong tries to keep himself occupied.

From his flat on the 26th storey, he has a view of the waterfront. He can see the cruise ships come and go.

That's when the camera comes out.

'Even if I can't take them, I can take photos of them,' he said.

This article was first published in The New Paper on December 22, 2008.