Vintage rally death: Crash with HGV was 'inevitable' court hears

Ronald Carey died while driving a vintage Knox car in the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run

A lorry driver was not distracted by his phone when he crashed into the back of a vintage car, killing its driver, a jury has heard.

Ronald Carey was taking part in the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run when his car strayed onto the M23 in 2019.

Lorry driver Michael Black, from Crawley, denies causing his death by dangerous driving.

An expert witness told his trial the crash was "inevitable" as Mr Carey's Knox car was travelling at just 21mph.

Mr Black, 52, also denies causing serious injury by dangerous driving after Mr Carey's wife Billi was also hurt in the crash.

Guildford Crown Court heard that Mr Black admitted making a call by tapping his phone in the seconds before the collision.

The phone rang several times but did not connect before the impact.

Giving evidence for the defence, Peter Davey, a former police officer with a forensic collision investigation unit, said the section of motorway leading up to the accident site was a long curve.

'Looming'

"If he's engaging in a task not driving-related and not looking where he's going while negotiating that curve, the likelihood is he would have drifted," he said.

Dashcam footage showed that had not happened.

Mr Black also applied his brakes and swerved, so "he must have been looking where he was going".

The issue, Mr Davey said, is one of "looming", the "inability of humans to judge high closing speeds".

The 100-year-old car was travelling more slowly than a tractor and no-one would expect something at that speed on a motorway, unless in queueing traffic, the court heard.

Mr Davey told the jury that drivers also react more slowly to something unexpected.

The Knox should have been following the A23 to Brighton but instead joined the M23 near Hooley, the court heard.

Mr Davey added: "Owing to the slow speed of the Knox in lane 3, the collision was inevitable.

"The reason for the collision was not in my opinion down to inattention or distraction."

The trial continues.

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