Badly injured driver rescued from burning car after head-on crash

Luckily for victim Ian Stoddart, he was not trapped in the wreckage after his Mini Cooper had been struck by a VW Golf driven by Mitchell Cox in north Warwickshire.

Following the horrific collision, Cox, aged 24, of Knotsall Lane in Oldbury, pleaded guilty to causing serious injury to Mr Stoddart by his dangerous driving.

But on the day Cox was due to be sentenced at Warwick Crown Court, the judge was told there was no medical report on Mr Stoddart’s condition and prognosis – despite one having been ordered at a previous court hearing.

Following the crash in October last year, Mr Stoddart was said to have suffered 14 broken ribs, two broken legs, a fractured pelvis, internal bleeding and damage to his liver.

The accident had taken place at around 6.20 in the evening on Saturday, October 28, last year in Trinity Road, near to Junction 10 of the M42 in north Warwickshire.

Cox had been visiting a friend in Tamworth and had headed back to the M42, intending to continue down to the M6 to get home.

But he came off the traffic island an exit too soon – and instead of being on the motorway slip-road – a dual carriageway – he had turned off onto Trinity Road where he overtook a car ahead of him and failed to pull back in.

Mr Stoddart was coming in the opposite direction on his way home to Tamworth, and there was a head-on crash between the two cars, which both caught fire.

Other motorists stopped and rushed to Mr Stoddard’s assistance, pulling him out of the wreckage of his Mini Cooper before it was engulfed in flames.

Cox, who was able to get out of his car unaided, said that he had believed he was on the dual carriageway slip-road. The case had previously been listed last month, when the judge on that occasion had expressed concern that there was no proper medical report on Mr Stoddart’s current condition and prognosis, and adjourned for one to be obtained.

But that had not been done, and prosecutor Mr Philip Allman explained: “There is a response from the police to say there is no update, and that what is in his victim statement sets out the position.

“He says his recovery is not in terms of months, but years.

“He says he has been told by his physio that it will take two years to get as good as he’s going to get.”

Mr Ian Speed, defending, said: “I am concerned.

“The judge ordered an updated medical report, and we have only got a detailed impact statement, not an objective medical report.

“I’m going to ask for the order to be complied with.

“I feel I have one arm tied behind my back without one, because I’m going to be trying to persuade Your Honour to pass a suspended sentence.”

He pointed out that Cox was in ‘full-time employment and very highly paid’.

He added his client would be in a position to pay compensation to Mr Stoddard if he was able.

Adjourning the case for a report to be obtained, and granting Cox bail, Judge Peter Cooke commented: “We need medical evidence, not just what is necessarily a subjective statement from Mr Stoddart, although that is not a criticism of him.”