Woman, 80, sentenced over road death of friend near Nantwich

An 80-year-old woman who admitted causing a collision near Nantwich that resulted in the death of a close friend has been sentenced.

Maire Gibson appeared at Crewe Magistrates’ Court Yesterday (December 23) where she was banned from driving for 12 months.

She will also need to retake her driving test before she can drive again.

The 80-year-old, of Wrexham Road in Bulkeley, had earlier pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving.

She was also fined £1,600 and ordered to pay £160 victims surcharge and £85 costs.

The charge related to a collision which occurred at around 2:50pm on Wednesday October 9 2019.

Mrs Gibson and her 80-year-old friend Beryl Moss were travelling along Long Lane in Burland, near Nantwich.

As Mrs Gibson’s blue Honda CRV approached the A534 Wrexham Road, she initially slowed down and stopped at the junction to turn right.

She waited at the junction before attempting to pull out just in front of a HGV.

Despite applying his brakes and swerving out of the way, the driver of the HGV, a 52-year-old man from Wrexham, was unable to stop in time and collided with the driver’s side of Mrs Gibson’s car.

Mrs Gibson and Beryl sustained serious injuries as result of the collision and they were both taken to the Royal Stoke University Hospital.

Sadly, despite the best efforts of all those involved, Beryl died as a result of her injuries on Friday October 18, 2019.

Following the sentencing, Police Constable Iain Condliffe, of Cheshire Police Serious and Complex Collision Investigation Unit, said: “This was a tragic incident which sadly resulted in the death of an 80-year-old woman.

“This has been devastating for both Beryl’s family, and for Mrs Gibson, as the pair were such close friends.

“Hopefully a positive can come out of this tragedy by it convincing other motorists of the need to always drive safely and be patient at junctions.

“As this incident shows, taking chances behind the wheel can lead to devastating consequences for all concerned.

“Our thoughts remain with Beryl’s family at this difficult time, and we hope that they can begin to move forward with their lives.

“We also hope that the conclusion of this case will provide some closure for the driver of the HGV involved in the incident. Through no fault of his own, he has been left with the memories of what happened that day, something which he will no doubt never be able to forget.”

Beryl’s family said: “Mrs Gibson was a good friend to Beryl over many years and had helped her to live independently since the loss of Beryl’s husband, Sam.

“Beryl was hugely appreciative of her kindness and friendship and we are very grateful to Mrs Gibson for this. As well as being seriously injured herself, she has keenly felt the loss of her friend.

“Beryl was very well known and loved in her community and her work as a midwife brought many new lives into that community. We are proud to have called her our sister.”

David Keane, police and crime commissioner for Cheshire, added: “Road safety is one of my key priorities, and tragic incidents such as this is the reason why.

“Collisions are the biggest killer in Cheshire and sadly Beryl was one of 36 people who lost their lives on our roads in 2019.

“That’s 36 people who didn’t come home and 36 families who had their whole worlds completely shattered.

“One death is too many and there has been too many deaths and serious injuries in Cheshire in recent times that were caused by certain driving behaviours.

“I applaud the officers involved in this case for their hard work to achieve justice for the victim’s family and I am committed to continuing to work with Cheshire Constabulary and partner agencies to reduce the number of serious incidents on our roads and motorways.”