A CORONER recorded a verdict of accidental death this week on a mother-of-four from Evesham who died when a trailer carrying a tractor broke loose from a van and crashed into her car.

Mandi Hawkins, of Cheltenham Road, died of multiple injuries in the accident on the A44 at Wickhamford last February.

Coroner Victor Round told an inquest at Stourport-on-Severn on Tuesday, that the owner and driver of the Mercedes van were convicted by Worcester magistrates in January for using a vehicle in a dangerous condition, but accidental death was the only possible verdict.

"This was not foreseen but it's the sort of thing that is foreseeable," he said.

"An accident does not mean it could not have been helped, but it just means that it was not intentional."

Ms Hawkins had been driving her Land Rover Discovery towards Broadway when the trailer came free from the van, which was travelling in the opposite direction, and the tractor it was carrying fell off.

A Ford Mondeo also failed to stop in time and crashed into both vehicles. Road accident investigators later said the clip which was meant to secure the trailer to the van could not be found.

They also said that the restraining strap which secured the tractor to the trailer had broken and the tractor fell but this was not a result of negligence on the part of the owner or driver.

Mandi, a 35-year-old hairdresser, had been due to celebrate the second anniversary of her engagement to fianc Paul Houlson the following day, Valentines Day, after being together for six years.

Her family was inundated with tributes, flowers and personal callers offering sympathy after the accident.

Recording the verdict, Mr Round said the only public benefit of this incident was a warning to all drivers to check vehicles and make sure everything was working properly..