Legal move over man’s death crash

Second family considers action against council

A SECOND family is considering legal action against Oldham Council over a substandard road that contributed to the death of a loved one.

Relatives of John Quinn (47), from Ashton, were already discussing legal action with their solicitors over his death on the A672 Ripponden Road, Moorside.

Now the family of Benjamin Jessop (24), from Barnsley, are taking legal advice after he died in a crash at the exact same spot.

The Chronicle revealed last week how Oldham Coroner Simon Nelson criticised the council for not swiftly remedying a substandard camber on the notorious accident blackspot at Besom Hill bend that contributed to the two fatalities.

Despite the problem being identified after the first tragedy on May 5 last year, it took four more accidents and Mr Jessop’s death three months later before work was carried out.

Gaz Gerrard, the partner of Mr Jessop’s mother, Sam, and speaking on behalf of the family, said: “We are taking legal advice as to what we can do and if we can take this further.

“The outcome of accidental death is pretty much what we expected.

“There are still questions that will probably never be answered now. We still don’t know exactly what happened.

“Neither the driver or another passenger could remember anything and we have different accounts of information.

“There was obviously a contributory factor from the state of the road but the police report said primarily it was down to driver error.

“It’s a case of we wanted answers but there’s still lots of questions.

“It’s been a traumatic and emotional time for us all. The inquest was a very powerful and emotional experience. Nearly a year after the death we had to go through it all again.

“You can never replace a son, brother and grandson. He has left a huge gap in everyone’s life. No amount of action or investigation will ever replace him. He’s really sorely missed.”

At the inquest, Mr Nelson said he had come very close to reaching a conclusion of neglect on the part of the authority and was not impressed with the manner it dealt with remedying the road surface after Mr Quinn’s death. He said he hoped the circumstances are never repeated.

Mr Quinn died after a collision with an out-of-control car that had careered in front of his motorbike.

The accident was blamed on the car driver losing control, with the wet road and camber contributing. Mr Quinn’s family is considering legal action against the driver and council.

Mr Jessop died on August 10, last year, with Mr Nelson again recording a verdict of accidental death and stating the camber and wet conditions contributed to a driver losing control.

Natalie Fletcher (21) was driving Mr Jessop and another work colleague to Leeds when she lost control of her car and careered on to the wrong side of the road and into a bus. Back- seat passenger Mr Jessop took the brunt of the impact and died from multiple injuries.

There had been 11 other similar collisions in the previous six years and many more may have gone unreported.

But there have been no accidents since the council carried out remedial work, including anti-skid surfacing.

Work to solve the problem long-term is due to start within 18 months.