Derek Jacobs, 83, and Charles Scripps, 78, both died after their vehicles collided on a smart motorway in Sheffield. Jean Scripps, who was driving the vehicle that collided with Mr Jacobs's van, was said to have been 'not paying attention to the road'.
A crash on a smart motorway which killed two pensioners would not have happened if there had been a hard shoulder, an inquest has heard.He had stopped in the live inside lane after a blown tyre, and had remained stationary there for three minutes and 34 seconds before his vehicle was hit by a red Ford KA, driven by Jean Scripps.
Mrs Scripps' husband, who was in the passenger seat of the vehicle, died aged 78 in hospital, two months after the collision.Speaking at Chesterfield Coroner's Court, assistant coroner Susan Evans said it was"immediately apparent that, had there been a hard shoulder, this incident would not have occurred".
"It is evident Mrs Scripps simply did not see the stationary van before she collided with it," she added."For reasons we will never know, she appeared to have not been paying attention to the road." Collision investigator Sergeant Paul Moorcroft agreed it was"highly unlikely" the crash would have happened had been a hard shoulder.He said retired teacher Mrs Scripps, who was 77 at the time, was diagnosed with dementia six months after the crash but there were no medical notes to suggest she should not have been driving.
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