An 81-year-old driver killed a retired couple when he lost control of his powerful Audi after pressing the accelerator ‘in error’, an inquest heard.
Stephen Burch and Katherine Burch, both 65, had no time to react as Humphrey Pickering failed to negotiate a sharp bend and lost control of his powerful A8 automatic.
The former vicar and charity worker, from Alcester, Warwickshire, suffered multiple injuries and were both declared dead at the scene of the collision in the popular North Wales seaside town Beaumaris.
Ex-librarian Mr Pickering, from Colwyn Bay, also died at the scene in Alma Street, as his car went on to collide with the front of a house on the afternoon of August 28 last year.
He was not wearing his seatbelt and sustained fatal chest injuries.
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Caernarfon Coroner’s Court heard that Mr Pickering had earlier tried to pull slowly out of a tight parking space off the seafront near to the Bulkeley Hotel, to allow enough room for his wife, Margaret, to get into the vehicle’s passenger side.
An eyewitness told the court the grey Audi suddenly ‘lurched forward’ and the driver ‘appeared to panic’ before the car ‘shot off down the road’.
CCTV footage showed the Audi initially accelerate ‘abruptly’ into a group of four pedestrians, knocking down two people who escaped with minor injuries.
Meilir Hywel, forensic collision investigator for North Wales Police, said Mr Pickering’s car continued to accelerate on Alma Street and narrowly missed colliding with two vehicles.
Mr Pickering then lost control of the Audi on a 90 degrees right bend.
Pre-crash data recovered from the vehicle showed the accelerator pedal was repeatedly pressed and the brake pedal was not activated.
The Audi reached a speed of 55mph, in a 20mph zone, in the seconds before the fatal collision, the court heard.
Mr Hywel concluded the sudden acceleration was because of ‘pedal misapplication in applying the accelerator instead of the brake pedal in error’.
He said: ‘He was then unable to correct his error while driving a powerful vehicle.’
One of Mr and Mrs Burch’s three children, Sarah Packwood, told the inquest her parents were both of ‘deep Christian faith’.
Her mother was a talented musician and baker who ‘always put others first’ and was ‘passionate about serving her community’, while her father ‘actively shared his faith throughout his life’ and was an ‘avid sports fan’.
She said her family has raised concerns about the age of Mr Pickering and his ability to drive a brand new powerful vehicle.
Mr Pickering’s daughter, Helen Baxter, said the father-of-two was an ‘active member of the community’ who was ‘out in the garden every day in all weathers’ and had ‘good’ mental agility.
She said Mr Pickering was a librarian in Oldham before he set up his own business in automated library services, which led to him working around the world. She said he had five holidays booked for 2024 ‘which was normal for him as he loved to travel’.
Senior coroner for north-west Wales, Kate Robertson, said she was satisfied the ‘most likely explanation’ for the collision was the ‘pedal misapplication which has led to a sudden and unintended acceleration’.
She told both families: ‘There are no words that I can say that will ease the pain and suffering you will no doubt be feeling, have felt and will continue to feel, but you have all acted with huge dignity.
‘I am incredibly sorry for your loss in these tragic circumstances.’
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