MYSTERY surrounds the death of a New Forest dad killed when his car hit a stationary trailer on the A31.

Southampton Coroner’s Court heard how Ross Lipsett’s silver BMW suffered “colossal” damage when he crashed into the back of a Skandia trailer parked in a lay-by on the westbound A31 dual carriageway near Ringwood.

A trail of debris was left after the car hit the trailer and ended up 75 yards further along the road at Poulner Hill on the other side of the 70mph road.

The 53-year old warehouse worker from Anson Close, Poulner, near Ringwood, died from head and chest injuries at Southampton General Hospital.

At his inquest in Southampton, police forensics investigations officer Antony Johnson said the BMW had sustained “colossal damage”.

“This collision occurred as a result of the BMW entering the lay-by for reasons that can’t be indentified and then colliding with the trailer and ended with tragic results,” Mr Johnson said.

The driver’s airbags had been deployed but Mr Lipsett was not wearing his seatbelt at the time of the accident which took place in the early hours of October 16 last year.

The BMW’s “substantially” underinflated tyres should not have contributed to what happened because the accident happened on a straight stretch of road, the inquest heard.

The only one street lamp was lit up in the lay-by on the otherwise dark section of road and Mr Johnson added Mr Lipsett should not have confused the lay-by with the entrance to a slip road.

No witnesses saw the crash and PC Mike Batten of Totton police station said he believed no other cars were involved.

He confirmed that Mr Lipsett’s death did not “bear any relationship” to several other fatalities recently on the same stretch of road.

The only thing the driver of Italian-registered vehicle which was carrying forklift trucks knew about the accident is feeling the impact of the crash while he was asleep in the cab, the inquest heard.

Medical reports found there was no alcohol in Mr Lipsett’s blood at the time of the accident.

Southampton coroner Keith Wiseman said that Mr Lipsett was “not a man who was in good health at the time of his death” adding he had been in a state of distress in the previous 24 hours about a motoring matter involving his daughter.

“This was a very unusual collision and the state of health of Mr Lipsett was in the 24 hours beforehand must lead to consideration of whether he had deliberately rammed his car into the station lorry and in doing so he was intending to take his own life,” said Mr Wiseman.

But because there was nothing else to suggest Mr Lipsett had deliberately driven into the lorry and because Mr Wiseman could not determine that the death was an accident, he recorded an open verdict into his death.

A family spokesman said that they were “happy” with the hearing and the coroner’s verdict. “They feel in this situation that that’s a fair outcome,” he added.

  • Ross Lipsett’s inquest came just a day after road safety campaigners won backing from a government minister to lower the speed limit on the road where he died.

Councillors and New Forest West MP Desmond Swayne persuaded Stephen Hammond to support a trial 50mph scheme on the A31 from Picket Post to Ashley Heath.

It is the same stretch of road that claimed the life of teenage scooter rider Jade Clark, also from Ringwood, earlier this year.

Mr Lipsett’s death sparked a council-led petition signed by more than 1,000 people calling for action to be taken to improve the safety on the A31.