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Cumbrian man killed himself by driving into lorry
By Sarah Nicholls
Last updated at 11:35, Thursday, 18 August 2011
An Egremont man killed himself by driving head-on into a lorry after being told he was being made redundant from Sellafield.
Paul TaylorPaul Simon Taylor, 26, of Mansion Gardens, died on April 24 last year after his silver Citroen Saxo crashed into a Morrisons delivery lorry on the A66 at Broughton Cross, between Workington and Cockermouth.
Coroner David Roberts heard how Mr Taylor, a former pupil of Thornhill Primary School and Wyndham School, had received notice weeks earlier that he was being laid off from his job as a scaffolder at Sellafield.
In the days before his death he sent text messages to a close friend saying he was going to be in lots of debt, he thought it would be easier if he wasn’t here and he did not want to talk to a psychiatrist.
He also said he had tried to drive deliberately into a lorry five days before he died but the lorry had swerved out of the way.
On the day he died, Mr Taylor, a former member of Rosehill Youth Theatre, had been to pubs in Egremont with his brother Leslie to watch football.
He had admitted to his close friend that he had taken cocaine and, after an argument, told her she should look at the newspapers the next day.
Leslie Taylor said his brother had disappeared from the pub at around 7pm before calling a friend half an hour later and told him details of music he wanted played at his funeral.
The friend, Lee Groves, tried to call back to help but Mr Taylor simply asked him to pass on the message to his mother Kay, telling him “you’re a mate”.
Minutes later, he was dead.
The inquest heard evidence from Ian Proudman, the HGV driver, and from Sarah-Jane Caulfield, of Silloth, whose car Mr Taylor was driving behind before the collision.
Both said they didn’t understand why Mr Taylor had pulled out from behind Ms Caulfield as she drew level with the lorry.
Mr Taylor, who had not been wearing a seatbelt, was pronounced dead at the scene.
A post mortem examination showed he had died of multiple injuries and tests showed he was over the drink drive limit and had cocaine in his system.
No mechanical defects were found on either vehicle and evidence suggested that the Saxo was travelling above the 60mph speed limit when it hit the lorry.
Mr Roberts said he was satisfied that Mr Taylor had deliberately driven into the lorry to end his life.
He praised Mr Proudman’s efforts to move out of the way but added: “It seems to me that when that lorry moved to the left Mr Taylor moved to the right to meet it.”
By Sarah Nicholls
Last updated at 11:35, Thursday, 18 August 2011
An Egremont man killed himself by driving head-on into a lorry after being told he was being made redundant from Sellafield.
Paul TaylorPaul Simon Taylor, 26, of Mansion Gardens, died on April 24 last year after his silver Citroen Saxo crashed into a Morrisons delivery lorry on the A66 at Broughton Cross, between Workington and Cockermouth.
Coroner David Roberts heard how Mr Taylor, a former pupil of Thornhill Primary School and Wyndham School, had received notice weeks earlier that he was being laid off from his job as a scaffolder at Sellafield.
In the days before his death he sent text messages to a close friend saying he was going to be in lots of debt, he thought it would be easier if he wasn’t here and he did not want to talk to a psychiatrist.
He also said he had tried to drive deliberately into a lorry five days before he died but the lorry had swerved out of the way.
On the day he died, Mr Taylor, a former member of Rosehill Youth Theatre, had been to pubs in Egremont with his brother Leslie to watch football.
He had admitted to his close friend that he had taken cocaine and, after an argument, told her she should look at the newspapers the next day.
Leslie Taylor said his brother had disappeared from the pub at around 7pm before calling a friend half an hour later and told him details of music he wanted played at his funeral.
The friend, Lee Groves, tried to call back to help but Mr Taylor simply asked him to pass on the message to his mother Kay, telling him “you’re a mate”.
Minutes later, he was dead.
The inquest heard evidence from Ian Proudman, the HGV driver, and from Sarah-Jane Caulfield, of Silloth, whose car Mr Taylor was driving behind before the collision.
Both said they didn’t understand why Mr Taylor had pulled out from behind Ms Caulfield as she drew level with the lorry.
Mr Taylor, who had not been wearing a seatbelt, was pronounced dead at the scene.
A post mortem examination showed he had died of multiple injuries and tests showed he was over the drink drive limit and had cocaine in his system.
No mechanical defects were found on either vehicle and evidence suggested that the Saxo was travelling above the 60mph speed limit when it hit the lorry.
Mr Roberts said he was satisfied that Mr Taylor had deliberately driven into the lorry to end his life.
He praised Mr Proudman’s efforts to move out of the way but added: “It seems to me that when that lorry moved to the left Mr Taylor moved to the right to meet it.”
