Lorry driver ploughed into cars killing one man and injuring two others while chatting on mobile phone

Mervyn Richmond, 49, was 'oblivious to all around him' after becoming engrossed in a 23-minute conversation with his mother, a jury was told.

He allegedly failed to spot traffic had stopped in front of him on a dual-carriageway and smashed into the back of it without even trying to brake.

Victim: Michael Buston, 36, was killed when lorry driver Mervyn Richmond crashed into the back of a line of stationary traffic

Richmond was using a hands-free set with a Bluetooth connection allowing him to have both hands on the steering wheel as he chatted, the court heard.

But that did not excuse him from being catastrophically distracted by the call when the tragedy happened, it was alleged.

Richmond's Scania lorry, which was heading down a stretch of dual-carriageway on the A631 at Corringham, near Gainsborough, Lincoln, crashed straight into a Ford Transit at the rear of the stationary line.

Transit passenger Michael Buston, 36, was killed in the resulting 'concertina collision', said Robert Underwood, prosecuting at Lincoln Crown Court.

Mr Buston's brother-in-law Peter Long and the driver of the vehicle at the head of the queue, Andrejz Matkowski, were both seriously injured.

Mr Underwood said: 'The accident occurred as a direct result of Mr Richmond failing to observe the vehicles in front of him.

'Undoubtedly he was distracted by that ongoing, 23-minute-long telephone call he was having with his mother. It was dangerous driving.

'This defendant, who was in charge of such a large, cumbersome vehicle, was paying little or no attention to what was going on around him.'

Mr Matkowski, who was delivering a load of paper from Grimsby to Gainsborough, had stopped at the side of the road to check his destination.

Mr Underwood said: 'It was a poor place to stop, but that does not excuse the reckless disregard for other road users demonstrated by Richmond.

'It is incumbent on drivers, particularly professional drivers in charge of large vehicles, to concentrate and be prepared for any unexpected situation.

'Rather than braking in anticipation of what was ahead, Richmond's lorry was speeding up at the point at which it ran into the back of the Transit.'

A jury heard Richmond ignored the flashing lights of a car that indicated he could pull out into the offside lane to avoid the obstruction ahead.

Mr Underwood said: 'So unaware was he that his vehicle made no attempt to deviate from its course and to swerve out of harm's way.

'Oblivious to all around him, he was clearly driving in a manner that fell far below the standard to be expected of a careful, competent driver.

'The pile-up occurred on a virtually straight piece of road in broad daylight. If other drivers could see and avoid the lorry, why didn't he?'

Mr Underwood said Richmond was using a mobile and a Bluetooth headset and it was 'not a quick 'hello, goodbye' type of call'.

Police records showed he travelled an estimated 17 miles during the call.

Richmond told police: 'I was talking on my mobile. But it was in a proper holder, and I was on Bluetooth hands-free.

'I had both hands on my steering-wheel. I was talking to my mother. I was under no pressure. I was in full and proper control of the vehicle.'

He claimed he was dazzled by the sun reflecting off one of his wing-mirrors, adding: 'I wasn't messing about with anything in the cab.'

Richmond, of Oakwood, Derby, denies causing the death by dangerous driving of Mr Buston on March 13 last year.

The trial continues.