I rarely get the 370 or 371 bus but about 3 months ago, I used the 371 to go to Altrincham for a medical appointment. When I exited the bus, turning right as I did so, something hit my head and made quite a reverberating noise. IT WAS THE OFFSIDE WING MIRROR!! I was stunned - literally. I swear I could see stars. I walked a few steps, then stopped and absorbed what had happened, looking back at the stationery bus, puzzled and with my head now throbbing. The wing mirror appeared to sticking out, right in front of the right hand door, at head level. An elderly lady approached me, telling me she too had been hit by the mirror!I went to my appointment and told the medic what had happened and she could see how shaken up and said I was in shock. My blood pressure had shot up and she made me sit and wait to calm down. My head continue to hurt and the struck site was swelling up. I also felt woozy. To cut a long story short, I contacted Rotala (the company who own Diamond, I believe), who took weeks replying. I also had been advised by Bee Network (they were helpful) to request the video footage, which eventually I received and could see my impact with the mirror in the short clip. Rotala's response had no sympathy or concern and merely said it was an 'isolated' incident (in other words my fault) and they were satisfied with the design of the bus and of their compliance. The email was copied in to their legal department.I had taken photos of the vehicle and spoken to a few of the bus drivers on that route and they ALL have told me, not only have several passengers had the same accident; INCLUDE ELDERLY FOLK, but that they had reported this faulty design to their company, who told them the same that they told me of how - satisfied they were there is no cause for complaint!! U-N-B-E-L-I-E-V-A-B--L-E-!The managers at this company are vile. They are liars, lack common sense and clearly have not been legally challenged on this matter. I told them I am not going away quietly. This is a health and safety issue for members of the public. I note all the low ratings they have here on Google (one of their bus drivers advised me to leave a review here). I also note that Rotala/Diamond have not responded to any messages.... not surprising, considering the way they have dealt with my complaint.
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Diamond Bus provides bus services in the areas of the West Midlands, Worcestershire, Warwickshire, Staffordshire, Shropshire.
Diamond North West also provides bus services in Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside.
Diamond South East provide bus services in the Surrey area.