Man died while overtaking in hidden dip on Northamptonshire road, inquest hears

The inquest was held at Kettering Council.

Timothy Fardon, 51, died after crashing on the B645 Kimbolton Road near Hargrave at 2.20pm on September 30 last year.

An inquest in Kettering yesterday heard how Mr Fardon was travelling between Kimbolton and Chelveston in a Citroen van at the time of the collision.

He was behind a DAF truck, travelling east, when he began to overtake about 550m west of Church Road in Hargrave in a hidden dip, contravening a solid white line.

It was then that he careered into the path of Mark Jayner, who was driving a grey Vauxhall Insignia.

Mr Fardon, of Woodland Avenue in Overstone, died of chest injuries.

Mr Jayner’s car went into the ditch and he suffered a pelvis fracture, back fractures and nerve damage to the leg.

The crash left him in hospital for two weeks and the inquest heard how it has affected him.

A statement read out said: “I remember thinking it was going to hurt.

“I do not have any memory of the impact.

“The next thing I remember is the smell of burning.

“I tried to get out but could not reach the passenger door.

“The accident has has a massive impact on my family.”

Mr Fardon was not under the influence of alcohol and forensic collision investigator PC Cliff Wilkins said there was nothing either vehicle could do to avoid the crash.

He said: “It’s quite clear that each vehicle was obscured from each other.

“It was simply not possible that either driver could have reacted to this collision.”

PC Wilkins added that Mr Fardon was not wearing a seatbelt, which would have exacerbated his injuries, but said this may have been for medical reasons.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, senior coroner for Northamptonshire Anne Pember said: “I feel it appropriate to say that there was absolutely nothing that Mr Jayner could have done to avoid this collision.”