Mark Hillier, 47, died when his Suzuki Grand Vitara collided with a BMW on the A345 in Pewsey on Thursday, October 12, 2023 at around 6.45pm. An inquest on Thursday, July 4, 2024, heard the watch manager, father of three, and firefighter since 1995 had gone to see a friend with his dogs in the evening.
While there he received an emergency alert and headed to Pewsey Fire Station. The station was about a mile and a half away and a five-minute drive. PC Hackford carried out an examination of Mark’s Suzuki.
He reported: “The driver’s seatbelt showed no marks consistent with having been worn at the moment of significant deceleration, and remained in the stowed position.” The court also heard a report from Lee Mayhew, a Serious Collisions Investigations Team lead investigator. Mayhew reported: “I think it fair to assume that he was driving in a manner to make progress and arrive at the station in a timely fashion.
“The rear near side tyre was underinflated and was likely to have been set for some time. This defective deflated tyre would have likely caused the vehicle to lose stability.” “There is no suggestion of mobile phone use.
“It is likely that Mr Hillier would have survived the incident had he been wearing a seatbelt.” The coroner, Ian Singleton, concluded that Mark lost control of his car due to an underinflated tyre. He collided with another vehicle and suffered severe head injuries.
He was confirmed deceased at 7.47pm. Mark had been at his friend Liam S.
