Safe Speed Forums

Did a driver's sneeze cause three deaths?
Last updated at 20:40pm on 27th March 2007

Neil Margerison, 23, appeared before Lincoln Crown Court facing three charges of causing death by dangerous driving
A lorry driver accused of causing the deaths of three members of a family in a 'horrific' accident claimed it happened because he sneezed, a court has heard.

Neil Margerison said it meant he was unable to stop his 40-ton HGV smashing into the back of a car containing RAF Flight Lieutenant Neville Rees, his wife Karen and their 11-year-old son Andrew.

Their car was crushed so severely between Margerison's vehicle and another lorry that some witnesses did not realise it was there, the court heard.

The Reeses' other son David, 14, who was with friends at the time, was orphaned by the tragedy. The prosecution alleges that Margerison's claim that he sneezed was simply a lie to cover up the fact that the 23-year-old was not paying attention when the traffic in front of him braked.

Lincoln Crown Court heard that the crash happened at 10.55am on January 5 last year on the A17 near RAF Cranwell, Lincolnshire, where Flight Lieutenant Rees trained flying instructors.



Flight Lieutenant Neville Rees, 43, his wife Karen, 41, and their son Andrew were killed when their Peugeot estate car was crushed


A box van travelling at the front of a queue of traffic slowed to a near halt. Behind the van was another HGV and behind that was the Peugeot 406 estate driven by Flight Lieutenant Rees.

Michael Fowler, prosecuting, said: "Margerison's lorry drove into the back of very nearly stationary traffic. The Peugeot was in front of his lorry.

"The car was crushed between his lorry, which weighed some 40 tons, and the trailer of the next vehicle in front, which was another articulated lorry.

"It was so substantially depressed that some of those at the scene were not aware that there was a third vehicle trapped between the two lorries."

A jury heard that the car - with Flight Lieutenant Rees in the driver's seat, his wife next to him and their son in the rear - burst into flames as a result of the collision.

Mr Fowler said Margerison's lorry was travelling at more than 17mph when it struck the Peugeot, allegedly proving he was not paying attention.

Margerison, of Clayton Le Dale, Blackburn, later told police he might have sneezed an instant before the crash. But Mr Fowler said Margerison 'made up' the claim, adding: 'You will hear it suggested he sneezed at some time during the unfolding of these events.

"If that was the case - and the prosecution don't accept it is - it might explain why he was driving dangerously. But we say it does not provide a defence.

"That is something he made up to cover up the reality, namely that at the crucial time, for some reason, he allowed himself to be grossly distracted."

Mr Fowler said Margerison's attention might have been diverted by a wide-load convoy moving down the road or traffic on the nearby airfield.

He told the court: "A sneeze is insufficient to account for the situation where the Peugeot was ultimately hit at a speed in excess of 17mph.

"Had he been keeping a proper lookout he would still have been able to stop in time. And if he sneezed then he should have adjusted his driving."

Flight Lieutenant Rees had completed several tours as a Hercules captain before qualifying as a flying instructor and joining 45 (R) Squadron in June 2005.

Paying tribute last year, RAF commanders called him 'a dedicated family man and highly professional officer and pilot'.

Margerison denies causing the deaths of Flight Lieutenant Rees, 43, Mrs Rees, 41, and Andrew by driving dangerously.

The trial continues