A careless driver who lost control and veered across a road killing himself, a woman and her elderly mother-in-law suffered a 'lapse of concentration', an inquest ruled yesterday.

Father-of-two Giles Morris, 36, of Graham Close, Blewbury, died after his Peugeot snaked out of control into an oncoming car on the B4015, near Chiselhampton, in July last year.

Roberta Wilkes, 59, of Chelmsford and her mother-in-law Rose Black, 90, of Chingford, were passengers in the Mercedes which collided with Morris' Peugeot.

An inquest at Oxford Coroner's Court was told Mr Morris would have faced careless driving charges if he survived the crash.

A crash investigation revealed both passengers could have lived if they had been wearing their seatbelts correctly.

John Wilkes, 61, the driver of the Mercedes, survived with minor injuries.

Assistant deputy coroner Dr Richard Whittington said: "It was a momentary lapse of concentration and very sadly on this particular occasion it led to this disastrous result."

Pc Andy Bryant, of the collisions investigation unit, told the hearing the Peugeot was rounding a bend at speeds of up to 50mph when it hit a kerb.

The driver tried to correct the steering but snaked out of control for 60 metres before hitting the Mercedes, he added.

"If he (Morris) survived the crash we would probably be looking at something like a careless driving charge," Pc Bryant said.

The police investigation also revealed it was probable the injuries suffered by both passengers were worsened because they had not worn their seatbelts properly.

Mrs Wilkes had leaned forward in her seatbelt to watch the car snaking down the road while Mrs Black held the belt away from her neck with her hands because it was uncomfortable, the inquest heard. Dr Whittington said: "I would have thought if that hadn't been so it was a survivable accident for the occupants of the Mercedes. This is a great misfortune."

Mr Wilkes was driving his wife and mother home from a day trip to visit relatives in Abingdon when the crash happened at around 5.30pm on July 30.

A statement read to the inquest said: "I saw a small white Peugeot snaking and wobbling as if the driver was correcting the steering.

"Then it really went into a snaking action, then it shot across onto my side. It happened so quickly. I remember having looked at the driver, he had a grimace or surprised look in his face."

After the verdict, Dr Whittington added: "It was a terrible tragedy and it is all very sad."

Mr Morris' wife, Marie, 31, of Blewbury, said: "There's lots of other factors on that road. Careless driving is conjecture, there's no evidence. It is a little bit harsh to say it was careless driving because we don't know what happened."

All three died from injuries caused by the car crash.

Dr Whittington recorded three verdicts of accidental death.