Investigation into police response to concerns for a man’s welfare prior to a double fatal road collision - Northamptonshire Police, March 2023

In March 2023, a collision happened at around 1pm on the A45, close to the A14 junction near Thrapston, and involved a Ford Kuga and a DAF truck. Both drivers were pronounced dead at the scene.

Following a referral from Northamptonshire Police shortly afterwards, we declared an independent investigation and sent investigators to the scene of the collision and the police post-incident procedures to begin gathering information.

After concerns had been reported about the welfare of the Ford Kuga driver on the morning of 1 March, police attended his home address, but he wasn’t present. The police incident log shows he was then treated as a high-risk missing person. ANPR checks were carried out and officers dispatched to try to locate him. Police became aware the man had told a family member he intended to kill himself and when a police officer spoke to him on his mobile shortly before 1pm he stated that he ‘would ram any police cars that try to stop him’.

Police officers encountered the fatal collision scene at 1.05pm.

The investigation examined the police response to calls concerning the welfare of the Ford Kuga driver; the actions and decisions of officers and staff in relation to locating him; and whether relevant national and local policies and procedures were followed.

Our investigators attended the scene of the collision, viewed dashcam footage, reviewed the telephone calls, police airwaves and incident logs, and obtained witness statements from officers involved in dealing with this incident. Investigators also reviewed the relevant local and national policies and guidance.

At an inquest into the death in Northampton in April 2024, the coroner returned a conclusion of suicide. In a separate inquest, the coroner ruled that the HGV driver had been unlawfully killed. Issuing our findings has awaited the inquests.  

The investigation established that police knew that the man had threatened to end his life and were actively trying to locate him to check on his welfare. However, they were unable to find him prior to the collision. The investigation found there were no police cars in the vicinity at the time and location of the collision. Dashcam footage from the first police car to arrive at the scene shows it came from the opposite direction the man was travelling in and approximately three minutes after the collision. Other footage shows his car cross the carriageway into oncoming traffic and collide with the HGV.

The evidence suggests the police staff and officers involved all made a conscious effort in trying to locate the man and were proactive in following lines of enquiry, in accordance with the force missing persons policy and national guidance.

The investigation treated police officers as witnesses throughout and found no indication anyone behaved in a manner that would justify any disciplinary proceedings.

At the end of our investigation in October, we shared our investigation report with the families of both men who died, Northamptonshire Police and the coroner. 

We carefully considered whether there were any learning opportunities arising from the investigation. We make learning recommendations to improve policing and public confidence in the police complaints system, and prevent a recurrence of similar incidents.

In this case, the investigation has not identified any learning.