Callum Lambert and Aidan Tomlinson inquests: Driver, 20, who had drunk six pints and close friend, 18, died in horror crash on Yorkshire Dales road

Inquests were held on Tuesday into the deaths of Callum Lambert, 20, and Aidan Tomlinson, 18, on the B6480 near Settle in December 2021.

Mr Lambert’s distinctive green Ford Fiesta was captured on a farm’s CCTV veering into the wrong side of the road before he lost control and struck two trees and several drystone walls near the golf club.

He was not wearing a seatbelt and was thrown from the car. He died the next day in Leeds General Infirmary from an ‘unsurvivable’ brain injury. Mr Tomlinson, who had been wearing his seatbelt, died instantly at the scene, also from a head injury.

CCTV from the Hoggs & Heifers pub in High Bentham showed Mr Lambert, an engineer who lived in Giggleswick, spending several hours socialising with work colleagues, and he was filmed drinking six pints. They were joined by another childhood friend of both men, HGV mechanic Liam Halliday, and the three then left the village to return to Settle in convoy, with Mr Lambert’s Fiesta following Mr Halliday’s van.

Mr Halliday gave evidence to the hearing and said the Fiesta overtook him on the journey back, but there was nothing to concern him about Mr Lambert’s driving and he did not seem unfit to drive when they left the pub.

He was the first person to come across the crash scene when he found the car’s engine on fire in the road, and immediately drove to the Royal Oak pub in Settle to get help. Among those who responded were Mr Tomlinson’s sister Shauna.

A sample of Mr Lambert’s blood taken after he was admitted to hospital showed an alcohol reading of 185mg, more than twice the legal drink drive limit, and a toxicological expert told the inquest that this level of intoxication was associated with double vision, confusion and a loss of co-ordination. No drugs were found in his system.

North Yorkshire Police forensic collision investigator PC Richard Barker gave evidence and confirmed that the road, which has a 60mph speed limit, is undulating with several bends and summits. It is unlit and on the night of the crash the weather was wet and foggy.

CCTV taken from High Bentham and the farm near the crash site enabled him to calculate the Fiesta’s average speed at 75mph, and the speedometer had frozen at 87mph. The car had no defects and he concluded no environmental factors were relevant to the collision.

There was no evidence Mr Lambert had attempted to slow down or take remedial action when he lost control and drifted across the lanes, suggesting that he was driving at a speed ‘beyond his capabilities’ and did not have enough time to react or correct his position.

Mr Lambert’s parents, Nick and Charlotte, and sister Ruby attended his inquest. Mrs Lambert told the hearing that her son ‘would not have driven’ if he had felt he was not capable of doing so. On the night of the crash he was upset about the health of his grandfather, who passed away the next day.

Assistant coroner for North Yorkshire Alison Norton accepted PC Barker’s findings that Mr Lambert had been driving at speed while intoxicated, and recorded a conclusion of death in a road traffic collision.

Mr Tomlinson’s inquest was attended by his mother Paula, sister Shauna and Shauna’s partner Ed Dobson. The teenager, who lived in Settle, was described as a ‘true petrolhead’ who volunteered at motorsport events with his sister and Mr Dobson.

Miss Tomlinson said she was drinking with friends in the Royal Oak when a distressed Liam Halliday arrived with news of the crash, and rushed to the scene. She recognised her brother as they had matching wrist tattoos, but knew immediately that he was dead. She described him as her ‘best friend’.

Ms Norton also recorded a conclusion of death in a road traffic collision for Mr Tomlinson.