Drugs driver who injured three in serious collision is jailed

Rhys Haden, of Little Barn Lane in Mansfield, lost control of his black Audi A4 cabriolet as he drove along the A52 at Roman Bank, Ingoldmells, just after midday on Sunday 6 March 2022.

Lincolnshire Police reported he was driving north, towards Anchor Lane when he crashed head on into a white Land Rover Range Rover being driven in the opposite direction, towards Fantasy Island.

During the police investigation, the Forensic Collision Investigator, PC Godfrey Barlow, was able to calculate from CCTV footage, the Audi was being driven, by Hayden, at a speed of 74 mph (+/- 5 mph) prior to the impact.

At the point the collision happened the road is a narrow coast road with a speed limit of 30 mph.

Due to his injuries, Hayden was taken to hospital and a blood sample was subsequently analysed, which showed he had cocaine in his system.

The legal limit is 50 micrograms per litre of blood, the results showed he had 74 micrograms in his system. He was not insured at the time of the crash.

Police say forensic vehicle investigators examined the Audi, which showed the automatic braking system (ABS) was faulty. This caused the ABS, which allows steering during heavy braking, to fail, meaning Hayden’s brakes locked while braking and his car went head on into the Range Rover.

The front seat passenger of the Audi, who at the time was 17 years old, suffered serious life changing injuries. He was not wearing his seat belt at the time of the crash, which Haden, as the driver, should have been aware of.

During interview, Hayden admitted to driving like an ‘absolute idiot,’ police say.

Both the driver and passenger of the Range Rover were taken to hospital; they suffered minor injuries.

Police say at the time of the collision the area was busy with holidaymakers, and witnesses describe seeing the Audi being driven at excessive speeds, with the roof down and loud music.

Hayden was convicted of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, driving without insurance, and driving while over the specified drug limit.

He appeared at Lincoln Crown Court yesterday (Monday).. He was sentenced to two years and 9 months in prison and disqualified from driving for 3 years and 7 months with an extended retest.

Detective Inspector Joanna Reeves, Serious Collision Investigation Unit, Lincolnshire Police, said: “This collision has had a serious impact on the front seat passenger, who was a friend of the driver at the time.

“Mr Hayden was a young driver, behind the wheel of a powerful car, which had a braking defect. He had cocaine in his system, and he was travelling at excessive speeds. He did not have any car insurance at the time.

“This collision has two out of four recognised contributory factors in serious and fatal collisions; speed and drug driving. There are no winners today. I hope other drivers will see this and chose to take different decisions when they are driving a vehicle. That would be a positive for me, that we have fewer collisions that could have been avoided.”