A GRIEVING mother last night said the ambulance service could have done more to save her teenage son who suffocated after his motorcycle crashed into a ditch.

Guy Evans, 17, died after riding with three friends in Featherbed Lane, a hazardous country lane between Wantage and Didcot, in August last year — only hours after collecting his AS Level results.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, Oxfordshire coroner Nicholas Gardiner said the Didcot Sixth Form pupil probably suffered an abnormality in his heartbeat, causing him to lose consciousness and crash.

Speaking after the inquest yesterday, Guy’s mother Beth Chesney-Evans, 55, of Long Wittenham, near Didcot, claimed the emergency operator gave no basic first aid advice, which she said might have saved her son’s life.

Guy was riding a 125cc motorbike and had passed his test two days previously.

But South Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust said 999 operators had to follow a strict list of NHS-approved questions to establish the priority of the call — which they were not allowed to deviate from.

Mrs Chesney-Evans said: “We believe the first priority in an emergency situation is to make sure the victim can breathe. It doesn’t matter at that stage what injuries they may or may not have, if they cannot breathe they will die.

“We have to ask ourselves whether the 999 system now operates more to prevent people being sued if something goes wrong than to provide a duty of care to accident victims.”

She called on the Government to review 999 guidelines and provide basic first aid education in schools.

She also wants first aid made compulsory in motorbike and vehicle tests.

Dr Nicholas Hunt, who carried out the post-mortem, told the court Guy, who has a twin brother Charlie, sustained no serious injuries that led him to become unconscious.

He said: “He was found in a position where it might be a bit difficult to breathe.

“If he was conscious, you would have expected him to extricate himself from the position he was in.”

Dr Hunt said it was not possible to say if assistance to his airway would have prevented his death.

An ambulance trust spokesman said: “Our thoughts are with the family at this difficult time. There is no indication at this stage that the caller did anything untoward. We will have a full internal investigation and if it transpires the caller did anything incorrect, we will carry out further training.”

Mrs Chesney-Evans, who conceived her twins via IVF, said: “We are determined that lessons can and must be learned from this tragic accident for the sake of others.”

She added: “Losing him has been totally heart-breaking and we will continue to cherish, love and miss him for the rest of our lives.”

Friend Matthew John, 17, of Wantage, was one of those riding with Guy in August last year, said: “He was an amazing friend.

“I will always remember his smile and his big grin.”

didcot@oxfordmail.co.uk