Mother of schoolgirl, 11, killed after being struck by a car wheel says she is 'disappointed' no one has been prosecuted as coroner calls her death 'tragic, needless and entirely preventable'

The mother of a schoolgirl killed in a freak accident after being struck by a car wheel says she is 'disappointed' no one has been prosecuted as a coroner today described her death as 'tragic, needless and entirely preventable'.

Amelia Wood, 11, was walking to catch a school bus in Manby, Lincolnshire, when the front wheel of the passing 4x4 broke off and hit her. 

The former Cleethorpes schoolgirl was airlifted to Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham, where she sadly died.

A two-day inquest into her tragic death in March 2018 heard that the vehicle, which was being driven by then 22-year-old Cameron Perkins, from Covenham St Bartholemew, was 'unroadworthy' due to a catalogue of faults.

No criminal charges were brought by prosecutors after Lincolnshire Police carried out a 'full and thorough investigation'.

Amelia Wood, 11, was walking to catch a school bus in Manby, Lincolnshire, when the front wheel of the passing 4x4 broke off and hit her

The inquest was told an examination of the vehicle found that a wheel bearing was missing, or out of place, which had caused the wheel to come off.

Vehicle forensic examiner Simon Kew, said the driver of a vehicle without an outer wheel bearing would notice 'knocking, grinding and a tendency for the vehicle to pull or wander'.

He said there was a 'considerable brake fluid leak from the near side front wheel.' 

The evidence of a full bottle of brake fluid bought on March 3 and a half empty fluid bottle meant the driver was aware of the fault.

Mr Kew told the inquest the Land Rover Discovery was 'not roadworthy' due to a catalogue of defects including a missing outer wheel bearing.

A front brake pad was devoid of friction material, warning lights were defective, there was no reserve travel on the hand brake and an off side tyre was cut so that ply chord was visible.

Mr Kew said any of the defects would have made the Land Rover Not roadworthy and would have meant it failed its MoT which it had passed in September 2017

'Any safe and competent driver would have been aware of the brake defect' said Mr Kew.

Police said Mr Perkins was not speeding at the time of the incident on Manby Middlegate.

Garage owner, Tom Statham, had told the inquest at Boston Enterprise Centre that Mr Perkins had often used his facilities to carry out work on the Land Rover, and that he had done so the night before the fatal collision.

Mr Perkins at that point had already given his evidence and was not there for that to be put to him.

However, Mr Kew said he did not see evidence of the Land Rover having been worked on recently.

The former Cleethorpes schoolgirl was airlifted to Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham, where she sadly died following the incident, pictured, in March 2018

'I would have noticed if the hub had been stripped down,' he said.

Earlier, the coroner's court had heard that Mr Perkins had been driving for just over a year at the time, and had owned eight vehicles in his first 12 months on the roads.

He had owned the highly-modified Land Rover since January 22, when had swapped a Ford Fiesta van for it. He and the previous owner agreed the swap after messaging on Facebook.

In his conclusion, coroner Paul Smith said: 'Amelia's death was a tragic, needless and entirely preventable death. She died as a result of an accident. '

He praised her parents for their dignity and their efforts to keep her name alive in the new road name in the village and with a youth centre to be named after her.

In his summing up, he said: 'There were 20 defects all of them would have failed an MOT. It was not roadworthy and should not have been driven that day, regardless of the wheel assembly.'

He said the evidence of the driver Mr Perkins and his friend Tom Statham were 'not compelling' in relation to their accounts of not having done work on the vehicle. But he added there was no evidence that work had been carried out on the vehicle the night before.

After the conclusion of the inquest, Amelia's mother Hayley Hodson said: 'We are very disappointed it has taken three years to get here and that Amelia was an 11-year-old girl walking to school like most children do daily and no one has been prosecuted.

'Our lives have changed forever and he gets to carry on as normal.'

Following the hearing, Detective Inspector Joanna Reeves, from Lincolnshire Police's Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: 'We carried out a full and thorough investigation into this collision. 

'I know the family were very disappointed there wasn't a criminal prosecution and I hope the inquest has provided them with some answers.'

A two-day inquest into the tragic death heard that the vehicle, which was being driven by then 22-year-old Cameron Perkins, pictured, from Covenham St Bartholemew, was 'unroadworthy' due to a catalogue of faults

PC Rich Precious, Family Liaison Officer for Lincolnshire Police added: 'I've worked with Amelia's family since the day of this collision. I've seen at close quarters just how much Amelia was loved and how she is now deeply missed and by so many.

'The strength and patience demonstrated by Amelia's family has been astonishing throughout the different stages of the investigation and more recently at the inquest. 

'I can't even begin to imagine their turmoil and how they have felt and coped, but they have been absolutely incredible and are a testament to themselves and to Amelia, showing just how much she was loved by them and by everyone who knew her.'

Tragically, Amelia had been diagnosed wit leukaemia when she was younger, which she had successfully fought.

Some of her organs were donated following her death, helping to save the lives of three people. 

Hayley added: 'I get my strength from Amelia. I imagine her with me all the time.'