Woman died in North Yorkshire crash days after 18th birthday - inquest

A young woman who died in a car crash days after her 18th birthday was "determined, loyal, crazy", the inquest into her death has been told.

Charlotte Harrison was killed when the Fiat 500 she was driving collided with a tractor on the A6055 in North Yorkshire in April 2022.

Miss Harrison died as a result of multiple injuries, the inquest at North Yorkshire Coroners' Court heard.

Her mum, Claire Brenner, said she was "full of life and we miss her so much".

She told the inquest in Northallerton that Miss Harrison was very close to her younger sister Mya and had wanted to train as a veterinary nurse.

The 18-year-old had suffered from a serious kidney disease since she was eight years old and was "completely crazy", Ms Brenner said.

"She had been through a lot, but she was determined this wouldn't hold her back.

"She was fiercely loyal to her friends and she was a central cog in our family. She was loud - and now the house is so quiet without her."

The inquest heard that just before the crash at around 15:30 BST on Friday 1 April 2022, Miss Harrison had been driving home from Queen Elizabeth College in Darlington to Leeming Bar near Northallerton.

She was driving on the southbound carriageway when her car crossed the white lines in the centre of the road near the entrance to Holtby Hall, near Little Holtby, and collided with a tractor and trailer travelling in the opposite direction.

Miss Harrison died at the scene.

North Yorkshire Coroners' Court heard that Miss Harrison had celebrated her 18th birthday on 28 March.

She was looking forward to spending the weekend with friends and family and was planning a trip to an escape room as part of her celebrations the next day, the court was told.

The court heard she had no alcohol in her system at the time of the crash.

The car was travelling at 50mph (80 km/h), Miss Harrison was wearing a seatbelt and the car was found to have no faults that would have led to the collision.

However, Miss Harrison was recovering from Covid and coroner Jonathan Leach said he could not rule out the possibility she had suffered a medical episode in the moments leading up to the crash.

The driver of the tractor, Kathryn Thomas, told the inquest she had been driving from Sinderby to Atley Hill at the time of collision and was travelling at 34mph (54 km/h).

"I was just driving along and the car was just there in front of me. I had no time to react. I didn't really have time to brake," she said.

Det Con Paul Harris, from North Yorkshire Police, said there were no defects with either vehicle or the road.

Dashcam footage and audio showed Miss Harrison "in good spirits" before the collision, he added.

He said he believed the teenager had crossed the white lines as a result of being distracted.

Coroner Mr Leach concluded Miss Harrison had died as a result of a road traffic collision.

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