AN UBER driver with no underlying health conditions died of coronavirus after a woman repeatedly coughed in his taxi, his brother has said.

Cabbie Ayub Akhtar, from South London, was just 33 years old, when he died of Covid-19 last Friday.

Ayub's brother, Yasser, said he developed coronavirus symptoms shortly after picking up the coughing passenger.

Yasser told the Daily Mail: "He told us about the lady coughing behind him in his Prius a few days before and that he was worried about it.

"Then the coughing with him started and he felt cold the whole time. We had the central heating on all the whole time to help him.

"I could hear his painful coughing from his bedroom at night and that he was struggling for breath."

Yasser said that when his brother's breathing worsened, they called for an ambulance.

Ayub was at first admitted to the Mayday Hospital in Croydon and transferred to St. George's Hospital, Tooting.

In a text message sent to his family from his bed in intensive care, Ayub wrote: "I am really scared... pray for me."

Days later, he passed away.

His family could not be by his side in hospital.

Yasser said: "We were not able to see him. But we knew it was bad because if we texted him, it took a day before he responded.

"He said he was scared because the doctors were asking him to try and breathe with his lungs and he couldn't.

"It has all happened so quick. It destroyed him."

Yasser added: "This is such a difficult time.

"We haven't been allowed to see him and don't know when we can have the funeral.

"In our religion, we prefer burials to be done within a day or two."

Latest figures from Publish Health England show there are now 14,355 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in London - an increase of 977 on to Tuesday's update.

Across the UK, there are now 60,733 confirmed cases.

So far, 7,097 people have died in the UK.

This week London Mayor Sadiq Khan revealed 14 transport workers have died after testing positive for coronavirus in London.