Man dies after being run over by his wife in car park

Daily Record

2 days ago

David Charles Seymour Chivers and his wife, Elaine Valentine, had travelled to Priorswell Road car park in Worksop, Nottinghamshire.
In a heart-wrenching incident, a man lost his life after being struck by his wife's car in what has been treated as a "tragic accident".
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David Charles Seymour Chivers, aged 72, along with his wife Elaine Valentine, had made their way to Priorswell Road car park in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, on September 12, 2024. The couple was there to arrange details for an event at Bracebridge Recreation Ground that they were organising for the subsequent week.
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However, upon their arrival at the car park, Mr Chivers stepped out of the vehicle to try and remove a height barrier at the rear of the car park, which led to the recreation ground, as was disclosed at an inquest into his death held at Nottingham Coroner's Court.
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Initially, both Mr Chivers and Ms Valentine, who was present at the inquest, stood beside the barrier, but then Ms Valentine moved to the driver's seat, according to Nottinghamshire Live.
While Ms Valentine took her position in the car, Mr Chivers continued his attempts to unlock the padlock, which was positioned too high for easy access, coroner Sarah Wood noted.
Mr Chivers was next to the driver's side of the car, with the door open, when the automatic Vauxhall Insignia unexpectedly reversed, causing him to fall and subsequently be "suddenly run over".
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The post-mortem examination revealed that Mr Chivers succumbed to a head injury, suffering severe brain trauma that was deemed "incompatible with life".
Coroner Wood recorded the death as accidental, stating: "Mr Chivers died of a head injury he sustained when the vehicle reversed, causing him to fall to the ground and suddenly ran over him.
"He placed himself in a vulnerable position and when Ms Valentine pressed the accelerator, the vehicle reacted abruptly and caused a sudden increase in speed. This left him with little time to react and knocked him to the ground.
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"What happened next was a tragic event and I find it is more likely than not that Ms Valentine panicked in an attempt to move the car away from Mr Chivers. Due to the vehicle being in reverse, this led to the vehicle moving towards him and suddenly running over him, causing the head injury, which was his cause of death.
"This was a tragic accident which I'm sure Ms Valentine is very unlikely to recover from."
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After the incident, emergency services were summoned by a bystander, but tragically, Mr Chivers was declared deceased at the scene.
PC Philip Broughton from Nottinghamshire Police commented that the emergency call came just after 10.50am and suggested that Ms Valentine may have experienced "sudden acceleration syndrome".
This phenomenon occurs when a motorist mistakenly hits the accelerator instead of the brake, leading to a state of panic and disarray.