Inquest concluded into the death of Grantham man Callum Fardell and Great Yarmouth man Laurence Webb in crash on A17 at Brant Broughton
A driver was on his phone moments before a crash that claimed ‘two wonderful lives’.
Callum Fardell, 23, and Laurence Webb, 68, died on January 10, following a road traffic collision on the A17 at Brant Broughton at about 7.03am.
An inquest into their deaths concluded today (Monday, June 30) at the Myle Cross Centre in Lincoln.
Mr Fardell who was born in Grantham and attended Belton Lane Primary School, was pronounced deceased by East Midlands Ambulance at 7.30am.
The post-mortem examination concluded that the medical cause of Mr Fardell’s death was severe traumatic head and chest injuries.
A pen-portrait read by his father, Dean Fardell heard that he was born in Lincoln and it was the couple’s third child.
He was described as being “polite, loving and a loyal friend” and with a “cheeky smile”.
He was said to be good at writing his own music and rap songs, and his father said he loved travelling and holidays as well as food.
He and his partner, who was expecting a baby, were moving to a property in Newark and were due to collect the keys at 4pm on the day of his death.
The inquest heard that Callum had left a property in Leadenham that morning and was travelling westbound along the A17 in his work’s white Ford Transit van. He was working at Harlaxton Engineering and was said to have a good work ethic.
The other driver, Laurence Webb, known to his family as Lau, was travelling eastbound in a heavy goods vehicle (HGV), carrying methanol.
He was pronounced deceased at 7.40am and the post-mortem examination concluded he died of severe traumatic and spinal cord injuries.
He was remembered by his family as “the head of the family” and as a professional and experienced driver, who had been looking forward to his retirement with his wife Karen.
Both drivers were the sole occupants of their vehicles and the inquest heard that Mr Fardell’s van had crossed the central line on a bend, colliding front-offside to front-offside with Mr Webb’s oncoming lorry.
PC Godfrey Barlow, a senior forensic collision investigator at Lincolnshire Police, told the inquest there was “catastrophic” damage to both vehicles.
Despite negative temperatures and it being dark due to the time of the year, PC Barlow concluded that road conditions were not a factor.
He said the road had been gritted four hours prior to the incident, as well as at 3am and 5pm the day before.
There was a patch of slush in the centre of the carriageway markings, but there was no evidence that either vehicle had driven through it, PC Barlow said.
He also confirmed that there were no vehicle defects and no evidence that either driver had been speeding.
However, a download of Callum’s phone showed that he received and sent Snapchat and Apple messages within the time frame of leaving his address in Leadenham at 7am until the time of the collision, believed to have been minutes later.
The coroner Jayne Wilkes said: “There is no doubt that Callum was using his phone immediately prior to impact just before and during the short journey, there were a series of messages to which he replied, and then direct engagement on social media.
“On the balance of probabilities, the distraction of his phone usage was the cause of his drifting into the opposite carriageway and colliding with the HGV.”
PC Barlow said the damage to both vehicles was “catastrophic”.
Callum was not wearing a seatbelt, but PC Barlow said to believe that, given the severity of the crash, it was “highly unlikely” that wearing one would have changed the outcome.
Eye-witnesses described hearing a “massive bang” and seeing smoke and debris strewn across the road.
Mr Webb, who had left Leeds at about 4am on the day of the accident, had taken appropriate breaks, reacted “entirely appropriately” by braking and steering left to avoid the van, but could not prevent the impact.
His lorry was found in a ditch, tilted and heavily damaged.
The coroner added: “Although he took evasive action, there was nothing he could have done to avoid the collision, and the probable cause of the accident was due to the actions of another driver.”
Mr Webb’s pen-portrait was read by his brother, Chris Webb, who described his big brother as a loving husband and the perfect father.
He read; “The life he lived was overflowing with love.
“The 10th of January of 2025 was the worst day of our lives.
“Our precious and beloved Lau was gone without any opportunity to say thank you and goodbye to a man so loved and so integral to our lives.”
The 68-year-old man was a professional driver from Great Yarmouth who loved being on the road and left behind a wife, four children, three grandchildren and was an uncle to 12.
When delivering her conclusion, Mrs Wilkes, said: “This was a devastating collision; two wonderful lives were lost.
“Callum, about to commence his life with his lovely partner, expecting a new life for the world and really excited to be getting the keys to their first house that very afternoon.
“A life as we’ve heard was filled with joy and humour.
“Lau, a professional committed lorry driver, dedicated family man, with a head of the family role, supportive, caring and looking forward to a future happy retirement with his wife Karen and to the family events of tomorrow.”
A verdict that the deaths were due to a road traffic collision was recorded for both Mr Fardell and Mr Webb.
